As The Twist Unravels
by Pattern of Night
Summary: Athena did have the right idea. Triton's turned into the ideal brother, Aphrodite's earned some respect and Hades and Nico had their long awaited talk. But with the return and appearance of two immortals and the tension building between father and son, all the hard work may turn into nothingness. Sequel to A Twist To An Immortal Assembly, Reading the Books story. The Last Olympian.
1. If You Want To Understand, Read This!

Why, hello there!

Before you skip the next chapter because this is an author's note and no one really enjoys reading these, it is important that you read this because you'll be so confused if you don't.

As The Twist Unravels is the sequel to The Twist To An Immortal Assembly, and if you haven't read it, I strongly suggest you do.

There's a small mix up with the chapter order. I got confused and accidently wrote the wrong chapter. What was meant to be I Drive My Dog Into A Tree (Chapter 5) is My Cookies Get Scorched (Chapter 6). I managed to get it all sorted out by acting as if the characters got everything mixed up, but I still get reviews and PMs saying that it's wrong.

It shouldn't be confusing since I worked it all into the plot

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this fanfic and let me know whatcha think by leaving a review, following and make this fanfic part of your favourites!

Thanks,

Pattern of Night xx

Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians and am not associated with its affiliates.


	2. C1: I Go Cruising With Explosives

_Hey FanFictioners,_

_Here is the sequel to A Twist To An Immortal Assembly! Such a long chapter, my head hurts! The sequel will focus more on why Athena sent the books in the past and how they change each character. This one starts off a bit differently but I like it._

_Pattern of Night._

* * *

When legends talk of Athena's personality, they talk of a wise beauty that many a man sought after. They talk of her intelligence and skill and how no man has ever and will ever conquer her heart. They are, of course, true. They also talk of how she was born an adult and how she immediately had the intelligence that no other could rival. But Athena had a secret, when she was born she did have an outstanding intelligence but she had a thing for fairytales like any other little girl.

It was odd, but Athena secretly loved the stories where everyone lives happily ever after. But life went on, wars happened and Athena came to the conclusion the fairytales are myths in both their world and the mortal's. She pushed aside her childish fantasies and moved on with her life.

She built cities and gave "birth" to children, she began a rivalry with Poseidon but she created a friendship with his wife. She became colder but gained more authority. But deep down, Athena still believed in fairytales, in happily ever after. She thought the reason she was doing this reading the books thing was because it would save lives. But deep down, so deep she didn't even realise it, she wanted to have a happily ever after and she wanted the others to have theirs.

She was researching on their process when it hit her, two people were missing. That's it, she decided. Because if she wanted a happily ever after, those two needed their's first.

* * *

They'd decided to take a small break and finally got to relax. Poseidon, Triton and Percy went to Poseidon's palace while Hades went back to the underworld alone. Zeus and Thalia talked awkwardly for ten minutes before she cracked up laughing and they had a real conversation about Percy and Nico.

Athena tried to talk to Annabeth about Percy or Luke but her daughter didn't budge on the subject. Nico was pestered by Demeter, who wanted to know her step-grandson.

"What an idiot!" Zeus laughed. His eyes darted to the clock on the wall.

"Nico, get my moody brother out of his hell hole. Hestia, could you get Poseidon and the terrible two out of his palace? We need to start the next book." He ordered.

Thalia and Grover gave Nico comforting looks as he made a face. In a dark flash, Nico was gone and soon Hestia disappeared too.

It only took a moment for Nico and Hades to return, who were avoiding each other uncomfortably but it seemed like forever until Poseidon, Triton and Percy reappeared.

"It's time to read again." Ares said, picking up the book that'd been sitting next to Zeus's throne since it's arrival.

"I'll read then?" Ares cleared his throat. "Chapter 1, I Go Cruising With Explosives."

"Good Zeus, are trying to kill Poseidon, Percy?" Artemis laughed.

**The end of the world started when a pegasus landed on the hood of my car. **

"I thought pegasi were fans of yours, brother." Hades asked Poseidon, technically not asking a question.

"I wouldn't read too much into it. It's Percy, he loves making things confusing for us." Annabeth answered.

** Up until then, I was having a great afternoon. Technically I wasn't supposed to be driving because I wouldn't be sixteen for another week, but my mom and my stepdad, Paul, took my friend Rachel and me to this private stretch of beach on the South Shore, and Paul let us borrow his Prius for a short spin. **

"Damn, I wish I was that lucky. Mother didn't let me go near a car when they were invented." Triton commented.

"Are you sure it's safe?" Demeter asked.

"It is pretty careless of him." Hestia allowed.

"Your parents got married." Hera commented, changing the topic.

"Not his parents but yeah." Nico said.

"Back to the topic of my son driving a car, congratulations." Poseidon smiled broadly at his son.

"Thanks." Percy sheepishly said.

"But it is incredibly reckless of him. You could crash and die, really it's ridiculous." Athena ranted.

"Don't tease me with Percival's death, Athena. It's too cruel." Ares said.

"It's Percy! Could we get back to the back now?"

** Now, I know you're thinking, _Wow, that was really irresponsible of him, blah, blah, blah, _**

Hestia, Demeter and Athena flushed a little at getting caught.

** but Paul knows me pretty well. He's seen me slice up demons and leap out of exploding school buildings, so he probably figured taking a car a few hundred yards wasn't exactly the most dangerous thing I'd ever done. **

"Suppose it's not too bad."

** Anyway, Rachael and I were driving along. It was hot August day. Rachel's red hair was pulled back in a ponytail and she wore a white blouse over her swimsuit I'd never seen before, and she looked like a million golden drachmas. **

Annabeth raised an eyebrow at her boyfriend when everyone wasn't looking and Percy shrugged. She rolled her eyes and resisted the urge to slap him for being so annoying as per usual.

** "Oh, pull up right there!" she told me**

** We parked on a ridge overlooking the Atlantic. The sea is always one of my favorite places, but today it was especially nice-glittery green smooth as glass, as though my dad was keeping it calm just for us. **

** My dad, by the way, is Poseidon. He can do stuff like that. **

** "So." Rachel smiled at me. "About that invitation." **

"What invitation?"

"Who'd invite _you_?" Apollo joked.

"I think the real question is, who'd invite you?" Artemis bit back.

** "Oh . . . right." I tried to sound excited. I mean, she'd asked me to her family's vacation house on St. Thomas for three days.**

"Why do you have to fake being excited? That's a once in a lifetime opportunity."

"I got the once in a lifetime opportunity to fight an evil titan, I couldn't pass it up." Percy shrugged.

** I didn't get a lot of offers like that. My family's idea of a fancy vacation was a weekend in a rundown cabin on Long Island with some movie rental and a couple of frozen pizzas, and here Rachel's folks were willing to let me tag along to the Caribbean. **

** Besides, I seriously needed a vacation. This summer had been the hardest of my life. The idea of taking a break even for a few days was really tempting. **

** Still, something big was supposed to go down any day now. I was "on call" for a mission. Even worse, next week was my birthday. There was this prophecy that said when I turned sixteen, bad things would happen. **

"We know that."

** "Percy," she said, "I know the timing is bad. But it's _always_ bad for you, right?" **

** She had a point. **

** "I really want to go," I promised. "It's just-" **

** "The war." **

** I nodded. I didn't like talking about it, but Rachel knew. Unlike most mortals, she could see through the Mist-the magic veil that distorts human vision. She'd seen monsters. She'd met some of the other demigods who were fighting the Titans and their allies. She'd even been there last summer when the chopped-up Lord Kronos rose out of his coffin in a terrible new form, and she'd earn my permanent respect by nailing him in the eye with a blue plastic hairbrush. **

"Yeah, she isn't that bad. Pretty annoying at first but not that bad." Hestia admitted.

** She put her hand on my arm. "Just think about it, okay? We don't leave for a couple of days. My dad . . ." Her voice faltered. **

** "Is he giving you a hard time?" I asked. **

** Rachel shook her head in disgust. "He's trying to be _nice_ to me, which is almost worse. He wants me to go to Clarion Ladies Academy in the fall." **

** "The school where your mom went?" **

** "It's a stupid finishing school for society girls, all the way in New Hampshire. Can you see me in finishing school?" **

** I admitted the idea sounded pretty dumb. Rachel was into urban art projects and feeding the homeless and going to protest rallies to "Save the Endangered Yellow-bellied Sapsucker" and stuff like that. I'd never even seen her wear a dress. It was hard to imagine her learning to be a socialite. **

** She sighed. "He thinks if he does a bunch of nice stuff for me, I'll feel guilty and give in." **

** "Which is why he agreed to let me come with you guys on vacation?" **

** "Yes . . . but Percy, you'd be doing me a huge favour. It would be _so_ much better if you were with us. Besides, there's something I want to talk-" She stopped abruptly. **

"She's gonna make a move!' Aphrodite squealed.

** "Something you want to talk about?" I asked. "You mean . . . so serious we'd have to go to St. Thomas to talk about it?" **

"You just deflect the girls, don't you?" Hermes shook his head.

** She pursed her lips. "Look just forget it for now. Let's pretend we're a couple of normal people. We're out for a drive, and we're watching the ocean, and it's nice to be together." **

** I could tell something was bothering her, but she put on a brave smile. The sunlight made her hair look like fire. **

** We'd spent a lot of time together this summer. I hadn't exactly planned it that way, but the more serious things got at camp, the more I found myself needing to call up Rachel and get away, just for some breathing room. I needed to remind myself that the mortal world was still out there, away from all the monsters using me as their personal punching bags. **

** "Okay," I said. "Just normal afternoon and two normal people." **

** She nodded. "And so . . . hypothetically, if these two people liked each other, what would it take to get the stupid guy to kiss the girl, huh?" **

Annabeth remained cool, calm and collected. But like the saying goes, "I may look calm but I just killed you three times in my head."

She was killing Percy not Rachel.

** "Oh . . ." I felt like one of Apollo's sacred cows-slow, dumb, and bright red. **

"I take great offence at that." The owner of the slow, dumb and red sacred cows snapped.

**"Um . . ." **

** I can't pretend I hadn't thought about Rachel. She was so much easier to be around than . . . well, than some other girls I knew. **

Annabeth opened her mouth but Triton swept in to save his brother from a verbal lashing.

"Yeah, Thalia is pretty hard to put up with. Always blabbing on about stuff."

"Hey!"

Triton gave her a look and gave pointed to Annabeth, who was glaring at Percy, and Percy, who was giving Grover and Nico frightened looks.

"Whatever, dork." Thalia sat back.

**I didn't have to work hard, or watch what I said, or rack my brain trying to figure out what she was thinking. Rachel didn't hide much. She let you know how she felt. **

** I'm not sure that I would have done next-but I was so distracted, I didn't notice the huge black form swooping down from the sky until four hooves landed on the hood of the Prius with a _WUMP-WUMP-CRUNCH _**

** _Hey, boss_, a voice in my head said. _Nice car! _**

** Blackjack the pegasus was an old friend of mine, so I tried not to get too annoyed by the craters he'd just put on the hood; but I didn't think my stepdad would be a real stoked. **

"Can't think of a man who wouldn't be ticked off." Hera gave Percy reassurance.

** "Blackjack," I sighed. "What are you-" **

** Then I saw who was riding on his back, and I knew my day was about to get more complicated. **

** "'Sup, Percy." **

"Whatz going zon?" Apollo said in a rapper voice. Artemis stood up and whispered in Thalia's ear. The girl stood up and let the goddess take her seat while she pushed Percy off of his and sat in his seat.

"Hey!" Percy cried.

"Suck it up, princess." Nico teased.

** Charles Beckendorf, senior counsellor for the Hephaestus cabin, would make most monsters cry for their mommies. He was huge, with ripped muscles from working on the forges every summer, two years older than me, and one of the camp's best armorsmiths. He made some seriously ingenious mechanical stuff. A month before, he'd rigged a Greek firebomb in the bathroom of a tour bus that was carrying a bunch of monsters across country. The explosion took out a whole legion of Kronos's evil meanies as soon as the first harpy went _flush. _**

"Clever."

"Of course he's clever, it's Hep's son we're talking about." Aphrodite supported her husband, much to Ares's distaste.

** Beckendorf was dressed for combat. He wore bronze breastplate and war helm with black camo pants and a sword strapped to his side. His explosives bag was slung over his shoulder. **

** "Time?" I asked**

** He nodded grimly. **

** A clump formed in my throat. I'd known this was coming. We'd been planning it for weeks, but I'd half hoped it would never happen. Rachel looked up at Beckendorf. "Hi." **

** "Oh, hey. You must be Rachel. Percy's told me . . . uh, I mean he mentioned you." **

** Rachel raised an eyebrow. "Really? Good." She glanced at Blackjack, who was clopping his hooves against the hood of the Prius. "So, I guess you guys have to go save the world now." **

** "Pretty much," Beckendorf agreed. **

** I looked at Rachel helplessly. "Would you tell my mom-" **

** "I'll tell her. I'm sure she's used to it. And I'll explain to Paul about the hood." **

** I nodded my thanks. I figured this might be the last time Paul loaned me his car. **

** "Good luck." Rachel kissed me before I could even react. **

"That was cliché." Hermes snorted.  
"What? It is. I mean kiss for good luck?" He added after receiving some looks.

** "Now, get going, half-blood. Go kill some monsters for me." **

** My last view of her was sitting in the shotgun seat of the Prius, her arms crossed, watching as Blackjack circled higher and higher, carrying Beckendorf and me into the sky. I wondered what Rachel wanted to talk to me about, and whether I'd live long enough to find out. **

** "So," Beckendorf said, "I'm guessing you don't want me to mention that little scene to Annabeth." **

"Too bad Annabeth knows about that little scene." Annabeth said forcefully, looking down on Percy. In reality, she wasn't that mad. It's just funny to see Percy cower in fear, in a friendly sort of way.

** "Oh, gods," I muttered. "Don't even think about it." **

** Beckendorf chuckled, and together we soared out over the Atlantic. **

** It was almost dark by the time we spotted our target. The _Princess Andromeda _glowed on the horizon-a huge cruise ship lit up yellow and white. From a distance, you'd think it was just a party ship, not the headquarters for the Titan lord. Then as you got closer, you might notice the giant figurehead-a dark-haired maiden in a Greek chiton,  
wrapped in chains with a look of horror on her face, as if she could smell the stench of all the monsters she was being forced to carry. **

** Seeing the ship again twisted my gut into knots. I'd almost died twice on the _Princess Andromeda_. Now it was heading straight for New York. **

** "You know what to do?" Beckendorf yelled over the wind. I nodded. We'd done dry runs at the dockyards in New Jersey, using abandoned ships as our targets. I knew how little time we would have. But I also knew this was our best chance to end Kronos's invasion before it ever started. **

"Why do I feel like this is not going to work?"

** "Blackjack," I said, "set us down on the lowest stern deck." **

** _Gotcha, boss_, he said. _Man, I hate seeing that boat._ Three years ago, Blackjack had been enslaved on the _Princess Andromeda_ until he finally escaped with a little help from my friends and me. I figured he'd rather have his mane braided like My Little Pony than be back here again. **

"He must really hate that place then." Poseidon chuckled.

** "Don't wait for us," I told him. **

** _But, boss-_**

** "Trust me," I said. "We'll get out ourselves." **

** Blackjack folded his wings and plummeted toward the boat like a black comet. The wind whistled in my ears. I saw monsters patrolling the upper decks of the ship- _dracaenae _snake-woman, hellhounds, giants, and the humanoid seal-demons known as telekhines-but we zipped by so fast, none of them raised the alarm. We shot down the stern of the boat, and Blackjack spread his wings, lightly coming to a landing on the lowest deck. I climbed off, feeling queasy. **

** _Good luck, boss_, Blackjack said. _Don't let 'em turn you into horse meat! _**

"Wise words. Try and listen to them." Zeus said warily.

** With that, my old friend flew off into the night. I took my pen out of my pocket and uncapped it, and Riptide sprang to full size-three feet of deadly celestial bronze glowing in the dusk. Beckendorf pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. I thought it was a map or something. Then I realized it was a photograph. He stared at it in the dim light-the smiling face of Silena Beauregard, daughter of Aphrodite. They'd started going out last summer, after years of the rest of us saying "Duh, you guys like each other!" Even with all the dangerous missions, Beckendorf had been happier this summer than I'd ever seen him. **

"That's so sweet. Don't cha love romance." Aphrodite said dreamily.

"Uh, no." Apollo snorted.

** "We'd make it back to camp," I promised. **

** For a second I saw sorry in his eyes. Then he put on his old confident smile. **

** "You bet," he said. "Let's go blow Kronos back into a million of pieces." **

"If it were only that simple." Zeus whispered to Hera.

** Beckendorf led the way. We followed a narrow corridor to the service stairwell, just like we'd practiced, but we froze when we heard noises above us. **

** "I don't care what your noses say!" snarled a half-human, half-dog voice-a telekhine. "The last time you smelled half-blood, it turned out to be a meat loaf sandwich!" **

** "Meat loaf sandwiches are good!" a second voice snarled. "But this is half-blood scent, I swear. They are on board!" **

** "Bah, your _brain_ isn't on board!" **

"That is too funny." Hermes said without laughing.

** They continued to argue, and Beckendorf pointed downstairs. We descended as quietly as we could. Two floors down, the voices of the telekhines started to fade. **

** Finally, we came to a metal hatch. Beckendorf mouthed the words "engine room." **

** It was locked, but Beckendorf pulled some chain cutters out of his bag and split the bolt like it was made of butter. **

** Inside, a row of yellow turbines the size of grain silos churned and hummed. Pressure gauges and computer terminals lined the opposite wall. A telekhine was hunched over a console, but he was so involved with his work, he didn't notice us.**

"Poor guy."

** He was about five feet tall, with slick black seal fur and stubby little feet. He had the head of a Doberman, but his clawed hands were almost human. He growled and muttered as he tapped on his keyboard. Maybe he was messaging his friends on . **

"Have you been on that website, Percy? From what I've heard it's pretty good. It'd be great for you." Apollo teased.

** I stepped forward, and he tensed, probably smelling something wrong. He leaped sideways toward a big red alarm button, but I blocked his path. He hissed and lunged at me, but one slice of Riptide, and he exploded into dust. **

** "One down," Beckendorf said. "About five thousand to go." **

** He tossed me a jar of thick green liquid-Greek fire, one of the most dangerous magical substances in the world. **

** The he threw me another essential tool of the demigod heroes- duct tape. **

"It's an essential tool for everyone, Seaweed Brain." Annabeth rolled her eyes, smiling.

** "Slap that one on the console," he said. "I'll get the turbines." **

** We went to work. The room was hot and humid, and in no time we were drenched in sweat. **

Aphrodite inappropriately wolf whistled.

** The boat kept chugging along. Being the son of Poseidon and all, I have perfect bearings at sea. Don't ask me how, but I could tell we were at 40.l9° north, 7I.90° west, making eighteen knots, which meant the ship would arrive in New York Harbor by dawn. This would be our only chance to stop it. **

Athena made a mental pouty face. She kinda wished she could have that ability too but then again, when would she ever be out in the sea?

** I had just attached a second jar of Greek fire to the control panels when I heard the pounding of feet on metal steps-so many creatures coming down the stairwell I could hear them over the engines. Not a good sign. **

** I locked eyes with Beckendorf. "How much longer?" **

** "Too long." He tapped his watch, which was our remote control detonator. "I still have to wire the receiver and prime the charges. Ten more minutes at least." **

** Judging from the sound of the footsteps, we had about ten seconds. **

** "I'll distract them," I said. "Meet you at the rendezvous point." **

** "Percy-" **

** "Wish me luck." **

** He looked like he wanted to argue. The whole idea had been to get in and out without being spotted. But we were going to have to improvise. **

** "Good luck," he said. **

** I charged out the door. **

** A half dozen telekhines were tromping down the stairs. I cut through them with Riptide faster than they could yelp. I kept climbing-past another telekhine, who was so started he dropped his Lil' Demons lunch box. **

"Aw, sweet."

**I left him alive-partly because his lunch box was cool, partly so he could raise the alarm and hopefully get his friends to follow me rather than head towards the engine room**

"Good idea, Percy."

"Stop acting so surprised."

** I burst through a door onto deck six and kept running. I'm sure the carpeted hall had once been very plush, but over the last three years of monster occupation the wallpaper, carpet, and stateroom had been clawed up and slimed so it looked like the inside of a dragon's throat (and yes, unfortunately, I speak from experience.)**

"Ick."

** Back on my first visit to the _Princess Andromeda, _my old enemy Luke had kept some dazed tourist on board for show, shrouded in Mist so they didn't realize they were on a monster-infested ship. Now that I didn't see any sign of tourists. I hated to think what had happened to them, but I kind of doubted they'd been allowed to go home with their bingo winnings. **

"That's a shame."

** I reached the promenade, a big shopping mall that took up the whole middle of the ship, and I stopped cold. In the middle of the courtyard stood a fountain. And in the fountain squatted a giant crab. I'm not talking "giant" like $7.99 all-you-can-eat Alaskan king crab. I'm talking _giant_ like bigger than the fountain. The monster rose ten feet out of the water. It's shell was mottled blue and green, its pincers longer than my body. **

** If you've ever seen a crab's mouth, all foamy and gross with whiskers and snapping bits, you can imagine this one didn't look any better blown up to billboard size. Its beady black eyes glared at me, and I could see intelligence in them-and hate. The fact that I was the son of the sea god was not going to win me any points with Mr. Crabby. **

"I have no advice for that one." Triton said.

** "FFFFfffffff," it hissed, sea foam dripping from its mouth. The smell coming off it was like garbage can full of fish sticks that had been sitting in the sun all week. **

** Alarms blared. Soon I was going to have lots of company and I had to keep moving. **

** "Hey, crabby." I inched around the edge of the courtyard. "I'm just gonna scoot around you so-" **

** The crab moved with amazing speed. It scuttled out of the fountain and came straight at me, pincers snapping. I dove into a gift shop, plowing through a rack if T-shirts. A crab pincer smashed the glass walls to pieces and raked across the room. I dashed back outside, breathing heavily, but Mr. Crabby turned and followed. **

"Wonderful nicknames you come up with, Percy." Hermes said sarcastically.

** "There!" a voice said from a balcony about me. **

** "Intruder!" **

** If I'd wanted to create a distraction, I'd succeeded, but this was not where I wanted to fight. If I got pinned down in the center of the ship, I was crab chow. **

** The demonic crustacean lunged at me. I sliced with Riptide, taking off the tip of its claw. It hissed and foamed, but didn't seem very hurt. **

** I tried to remember anything from the old stories that might help with this thing. Annabeth had told me about a monster crab-something about Hercules crushing it under his big foot? **

"You listen to me?" Annabeth asked, astounded.

"Sometimes." Percy shrugged.

**That wasn't going to work here. This crab was slightly bigger than my Reeboks. **

** Then a weird thought occurred to me. Last Christmas, my mom and I had brought Paul Blofis to our old cabin at Montauk, where we'd been going forever. Paul had taken me crabbing, and when he'd brought up a net full of the things, he'd shown me how crabs have a chink in their armor, right in the middle of their ugly bellies. The only problem was getting to the ugly belly. **

"That bad, huh?" Apollo commented.

"Obviously, he did just explain it." Artemis rolled her eyes.

** I glanced at the fountain, then at the marble floor, already slick from scuttling crab tracks. I held out my hand, concentrating on the water, and the fountain exploded. Water sprayed everywhere, three stories high, dousing the balconies and the elevators and the windows of the shops. The crab didn't care. It loved water. It came at me sideways, snapping and hissing, and I ran straight at it, screaming, **

** "AHHHHHHH!" **

** Just before we collided, I hit the ground baseball-style and slid on the wet marble floor straight under the creature. It was like sliding under a seven-ton armored vehicle. All the crab had to do was sit and squash me, but before it realized what I was going on, I jabbed Riptide into the chink in its armor, let go of the hilt, and pushed myself out the backside. **

** The monster shuddered and hissed. Its eyes dissolved. Its shell turned bright red as its insides evaporated. The empty shell clattered to the floor in a massive heap. **

** I didn't have time to admire my handiwork. I ran for the nearest stairs while all around me monsters and demigods shouted orders and strapped on their weapons. I was empty-handed. Riptide, being magic, would appear in my pocket sooner or later, but for now it was stuck somewhere under the wreckage of the crab, and I had no time to retrieve it. **

** In the elevator foyer on deck eight, a couple of _dracaenae_ slithered across my path. From the waist up, they were woman with green scaly skin, yellow eyes, and forked tongues. From the waist down, they had double snake trunks instead of legs. They held spears and weighted nets, and I knew from experience they could use them. **

** "What is thisss?" one said. "A prize for Kronoss!" **

** I wasn't in the mood to play break-the-snake, but in front of me was a stand with a model of the ship, like a YOU ARE HERE display. I ripped the model off the pedestal and hurled it at the first _dracaena. _ **

"Good use of surroundings." Ares praised, looking up from the book.

**The boat smacked her in the face and she went down with the ship. I jumped over her, grabbed her friend's spear, and swung her around. She slammed into the elevator, and I kept running toward the front of the ship. **

** "Get him!" she screamed. **

** Hellhounds bayed. An arrow from somewhere whizzed past my face and impaled itself in the mahogany-panelled wall of the stairwell. **

"That is Mahogany!" Thalia cried, making a reference to the Hunger Games.

** I didn't care-as long as I got the monsters away from the engine room and gave Beckendorf more time. **

** As I was running up the stairwell, a kid charged down. **

** He looked like he'd just woken up from a nap. His armor was half on. He drew his sword and yelled, "Kronos!" but he sounded more scared than angry. He couldn't have been more than twelve-about the same age I was when I'd first arrived at Camp Half-Blood. **

"He's taking advantage of young people?" Hera said, disbelieving. That child was someone's family, their son. It was saddening to hear that children were being brainwashed.

**That thought depressed me. This kid was getting brain-washed-trained to hate the gods and lash out because he'd been born half Olympian. Kronos was using him, and yet the kid thought I was his enemy. **

** No way was I going to hurt him. I didn't need a weapon for this. I stepped inside his strike and grabbed his wrist, slamming it against the wall. His sword clattered out of his hand. **

"Quick and simple." Grover said simply.

** Then I did something I hadn't planned on. It was probably stupid. It definitely jeopardized our mission, but I couldn't help it. **

** "If you want to live," I told him, "get off this ship _now. _ Tell the other demigods." Then I shoved him down the stairs and sent him tumbling to the next door. **

"At least you tried." Hestia smiled.

** I kept climbing. **

** Bad memories: a hallway ran past the cafeteria. Annabeth, my half brother Tyson, and I had sneaked through here three years ago on my first visit. **

"Good times." Annabeth said, acting as if they were fond memories.

** I burst outside onto the main deck. Off the port bow, the sky was darkening from purple to black. A swimming pool glowed between two glass towers with more balconies and restaurant decks. The whole upper ship seemed eerily deserted. **

** All I had to do was cross to the other side. Then I could take the staircase down to the helipad-our emergency rendezvous point. With any luck, Beckendorf would meet me there. We'd jump into the sea. My water powers would protect us both, and we'd detonate the charges from a quarter mile away. **

"Please let it work out that way."

** I was halfway across the deck when the sound of a voice made me freeze. "You're late, Percy." **

** Luke stood on the balcony above me, a smile on his scarred face. **

"Kronos smiles?" Grover shuddered.

**He wore jeans, a white T-shirt, and flip-flops, like he was just a normal college guy, but his eyes told the truth. They were solid gold. **

Hermes's eyes narrowed, he was sad but at the moment, he's just angry.

** "We've been expecting you for days." At first he sounded normal, like Luke. But then his face twitched.**

"Kronos is still trying to gain full control." Athena deducted.

** A shudder passed through his body as though he'd just drunk something really nasty. His voice became heavier, ancient, and powerful- the voice of the Titan lord Kronos. The words scraped down my spine like a knife blade. "Come, bow before me." **

"Perseus bows to no one." Hades muttered.

** "Yeah, that'll happen," I muttered. **

** Laistrygonian giants filed in on either side of the swimming pool as if they'd been waiting for a cue. Each was eight feet tall with tattooed arms, leather armor, and spiked clubs. Demigod archers appeared on the roof above Luke. Two hellhounds leaped down from the opposite balcony and snarled at me. Within seconds I was surrounded. A trap: there's no way they could've gotten into position so face unless they'd known I was coming. **

** I looked up at Luke, and anger boiled inside me. I didn't know if Luke's consciousness was even still alive inside that body. Maybe, the way his voice had changed . . . or maybe it was just Kronos adapting to his new form. I told myself it didn't matter. Luke had been twisted and evil long before Kronos possessed him. A voice in my head said: _I have to fight him eventually. Why not now? _**

"Let me just say, I know what I do in the next moment or two is really stupid. No need to make remarks about it." Percy said, trying to avoid embarrassment.

** According to that big prophecy, I was supposed to make a choice that saved or destroyed the world when I was sixteen. That was only seven days away. Why not now? If I really had the power, what difference would a week make? I could end this threat right here by taking down Kronos. Hey, I'd fought monsters and gods before. As if reading my thoughts, Luke smiled. No, he was _Kronos. _ I had to remember that. **

** "Come forward," he said. "If you dare." **

** The crowd of monsters parted. I moved up the stairs, my heart pounding. I was sure somebody would stab me in the back, but they let me pass.**

"You're Kronos's kill." Poseidon commented.

** I felt my pocket and found my pen waiting. I uncapped it, and Riptide grew into a sword. **

** Kronos's weapon appeared in his hands-a six-foot-long scythe, a half Celestial bronze, half mortal steel. Just looking at it made my knees turn to Jell-O. But before I could change my mind, I charged. Time slowed down. I mean _literally _slowed down, because Kronos had that power. I felt like I was moving through syrup. My arms were so heavy, I could barely raise my sword. Kronos smiled, swirling his scythe at normal speed and waiting for me to creep toward my death. **

"That's so unfair." Grover muttered.

"That's so my father." Hestia said distastefully.

** I tried to fight his magic. I concentrated on the sea around me-the source of my power. I'd gotten better at channeling it over the year, but now nothing seemed to happen. **

"He's too powerful. Even more than Poseidon."

** I took another slow step forward. Giants jeered _Dracaenae_ hissed with laughter. **

** _Hey, ocean_, I pleaded. _Any day would be good._ Suddenly there was a wrenching pain in my gut. The entire boat lurched sideways, throwing monsters off their feet. Four thousand gallons of salt water surged out of the swimming pool, dousing me and Kronos and everyone on the deck. The water revitalized me, breaking the time spell, and I lunged forward. **

** I struck at Kronos, but I was still too slow. I made the mistake of looking at his face- _Luke's face_-a guy who was once my friend. As much as I hated him, it was hard to kill him. **

** Kronos had no such hesitation. He sliced downward with his scythe. I leaped back, and the evil blade missed by an inch, cutting a gash in the deck right between my feet. **

** I kicked Kronos in the chest. He stumbled backward, but he was heavier than Luke should've been. It was like kicking a refrigerator. **

"You're doing really well, Percy" Triton encouraged.

"At least you got him to stumble." Ares looked up from the book.

** Kronos swung his scythe again. I intercepted with Riptide, but his strike was so powerful, my blade could only deflect it. The edge of the scythe shaved off my shirtsleeve and grazed my arm. It shouldn't have been a serious cut, but the entire side of my body exploded with pain. I remembered what a sea demon had once said about Kronos's scythe: _Careful, fool. One touch, and the blade will sever your soul from your body. _ Now I understood what he meant. I wasn't just losing blood. I could feel my strength, my will, my identity draining away. **

Poseidon cringed.

** I stumbled backward, switched my sword to my left hand, and lunged desperately. My blade should've run him through, but it deflected off his stomach like I was hitting solid marble. There was no way he should've survived that. **

** Kronos laughed. "A poor performance, Percy Jackson. Luke tells me you were never his match at swordplay." **

"Nah, he was better." Grover retorted.

** My vision started to blur. I knew I didn't have much time. **

** "Luke had a big head," I said. "But at least it was _his_ head." **

"Good one, Perce."

** "A shame to kill you now," Kronos mused, "before the final plan unfolds. I would love to see the terror in your eyes when you realize how I will destroy Olympus." **

** "You'll never get this boat to Manhattan." My arm was throbbing. Black spots danced in my vision. **

** "And why would that be?" Kronos's golden eyes glittered. His face-Luke's face-seemed like a mask, unnatural and lit from behind by some evil power. "Perhaps you are counting on your friend with the explosives?" **

** He looked down at the pool and called, "Nakamura!" A teenage guy in full Greek armor pushed through the crowd. His left eye was covered with a black patch. I knew him, of course: Ethan Nakamura, the son of Nemesis. I'd saved his life in the Labyrinth last summer, and in return, the little punk had helped Kronos come back to life. **

"Idiot." Ares muttered under his breath, those who heard him wasn't sure if he was talking about Nakamura or Percy.

** "Success, my lord," Ethan called. "We found him just as we were told." **

** He clapped his hands, and two giants lumbered forward, dragging Charles Beckendorf between them. My heart almost stopped. Beckendorf had a swollen eye and cuts all over his face and arms. His armor was gone and his shirt was nearly torn off. **

** "No!" I yelled. **

** Beckendorf met my eyes. He glanced at his hand like he was trying to tell me something. _His watch. _ They hadn't taken it yet, and that was the detonator. Was it possible the explosives were armed? **

** Surely the monsters would've dismantled them right away. **

Or maybe, just maybe, they haven't found them, Demeter dared herself to hope.

** "We found him amidships," one of the giants said, "trying to sneak to the engine room. Can we eat him now?" **

** "Soon." Kronos scowled at Ethan. "Are you sure he didn't set the explosives?" **

** "He was going _toward_ the engine room, my lord." **

** "How do you know that?" **

** "Er . . ." Ethan shifted uncomfortably. "He was heading in that direction. And he told us. His bag is still full of explosives." Slowly, I began to understand. Beckendorf had fooled them. When he'd realized he was going to be captured, he turned to make it look like he was going the other way. He'd convinced them he hadn't made it to the engine room yet. The Greek fire might still be primed! **

"Genius!"

** But that didn't do us any good unless we could get off the ship and detonate it. **

** Kronos hesitated. **

** _Buy the story, _I prayed. The pain in my arm was so bad now I could barely stand. **

** "Open his bag," Kronos ordered. **

** One of the giants ripped the explosives satchel from Beckendorf's shoulders. He peered inside, grunted, and turned it upside down. Panicked monsters surged backward. If the bag really had been full of Greek fire jars, we would've all blown up. But what fell out were a dozen cans of peaches. **

"Oh no, Hep's going to be devastated." Aphrodite covered her mouth with her hand.

** I could hear Kronos breathing, trying to control his anger. **

** "Did you, perhaps," he said, "capture this demigod near the galley?" **

** Ethan turned pale. "Um-" **

** "And did you, perhaps, send someone to actually CHECK THE ENGINE ROOM?" **

** Ethan scrambled back in terror, then turned on his heels and ran. **

** I cursed silently. Now we had only minutes before the bombs were disarmed. I caught Beckendorf's eyes again and asked a silent question, hoping he would understand: _How long? _**

** He cupped his fingers and thumb, making a circle. _Zero. _ There was no delay on the timer at all. If he managed to press the detonator button, the ship would blow at once. We'd never be able to get far enough away before using it. The monsters would kill us first, or disarm the explosives, or both. **

** Kronos turned toward me with a crooked smile. "You'll have to excuse my incompetent help, Percy Jackson. But it doesn't matter. We have you now. We've known you were coming for weeks." He held out his hand and dangled a little silver bracelet with a scythe charm-the Titan lord's symbol. **

"A spy!" Zeus stood up and began to pace, thinking.

** The wound in my arm was sapping my ability to think, but I muttered, "Communication device . . . spy at camp." Kronos chuckled. "You can't count on friends. They will always let you down. Luke learned that lesson the hard way. Now drop your sword and surrender to me, or your friend dies." **

** I swallowed. One of the giants had his hand around **

** Beckendorf's neck. I was in no shape to rescue him, and even if I tried, he would die before I got there. We both would. **

** Beckendorf mouthed one word: _Go. _**

** I shook my head. I couldn't just leave him. **

Poseidon growled.

Too loyal for his own good, thought Triton, shaking his head.

** The second giant was still rummaging through the peach cans, which meant Beckendorf's left arm was free. He raised it slowly toward the watch on his right wrist. I wanted to scream, _NO! _**

** Then down by the swimming pool, one of the _dracaenae_ hissed, **

** "What isss he doing? What isss that on hisss wrissst?" Beckendorf closed eyes tight and brought his hand up to his watch. **

** I had no choice.**

"Janus sucks." Hera said.

** I threw my sword like a javelin at Kronos. It bounced harmlessly off his chest, but it did startle him. I pushed through a crowd of monsters and jumped off the side of the ship toward the water a hundred feet below. I heard rumbling deep in the ship. Monsters yelled at me from above. A spear sailed past my ear. An arrow pierced my thigh, but I barely had time to register the pain. I plunged into the sea and willed the currents to take me far, far away-a hundred yards, two hundred yards. **

** Even from that distance, the explosion shook the world.**

"Oh Hep." Aphrodite bowed her head.

** Heat seared the back of my head. The _Princess Andromeda_ blew up from both sides, a massive fireball of green flame roiling into the dark sky, consuming everything. **

** Beckendorf, I thought. **

** Then I blacked out and sank like an anchor toward the bottom of the sea.  
**A moment of silence passed over them for Nakamura, for the 12 year old demigod but more importantly for Beckendorf.


	3. C2: I Meet Some Fishy Relatives

**CHAPTER TWO**

**I MEET SOME FISHY**** RELATIVES**

Persephone has been interpreted as many things; as a promiscuous goddess, desperate for power; as a helpless captive, taken by her uncle. But no one ever saw her for who she truly was. Persephone saw herself in nearly every dead soul in the underworld; lost; alone; and haunted. She could see her lost dreams and the life she could never get.

Persephone loved her husband. Beneath all of the cold exterior and betrayal, he had a good heart. Persephone did not, however, love her husband's illegitimate children, whether they were dead or alive. People judge her because of it, because they themselves like Nico's sarcastic comments or Hazel's gift. But what married woman would appreciate her husband's bastard?

She missed her marriage, the good days when she and Hades would go on vacation and have heart to heart conversations. It's why she and Amphitrite were so close, the Queen of the Sea knows what it's like to feel emotionally and mentally disconnected from your husband.

Persephone wasn't the nicest stepmother in the world but who could blame her?

* * *

"I'll read." Triton offered.

"Wait! Fishboy can read?" Aphrodite shouted, mimicking Triton from the previous book.

"Yeah, it's one of my proudest accomplishments." Triton laughed, catching on to the hint.

"Anyways, the chapter is called I Meet Some Fishy Relatives."

** Demigod dreams suck. **

"Tell me about it." Thalia complained. Percy opened his mouth to actually tell her about it when she gave him a stern gaze and he closed his mouth sullenly.

** The thing is, they're never just **_**dreams. **_** They've got to be visions, omens, and all that other mystical stuff that makes my brain hurt. **

"Please, everything makes your brain hurt." Nico snorted.

** I dreamed I was in a dark palace at the top of a mountain. Unfortunately, I recognized it: the palace of the Titans on top of Mount Othrys, otherwise known as Mount Tamalpais, in California. The main pavilion was open to the night, ringed with black Greek columns and statues of the Titans. Torchlight glowed against the black marble floor. In the center of the room, an armored giant struggled under the weight of a swirling funnel cloud-Atlas, holding up the sky. **

"Imagine the weight of the sky literally on your shoulders." Grover wondered.

"It hurts like hell." Annabeth told Grover from personal experience.

** Two other giant men stood nearby over a bronze brazier, studying images in the flames. **

** "Quite an explosion," one said. **

"It must've been pretty powerful for a compliment from a giant man." Demeter raised her eyebrows.

**He wore black armor studded with silver dots like a starry night. His face was covered in a war helm with a ram's horn curling on either side. **

** "It doesn't matter," the other said. This Titan was dressed in gold robes, with golden eyes like Kronos. His entire body glowed. He reminded me of Apollo, God of the Sun, **

"I take offence at that." Apollo said, offended.

"Ha! Percy compared you to a giant." Artemis snickered.

**except the Titan's light was harsher, and his expression crueler. "The gods have answered the challenge. Soon they will be destroyed." **

** The images in the fire were hard to make out: storms, buildings crumbling, mortals screaming in terror. **

** "I will go east to marshal our forces," the golden Titan said. **

** "Krios, you shall remain and guard Mount Othrys." The ram horn dude grunted. "I always get the stupid jobs. Lord of the South. Lord of Constellations. Now I get to babysit Atlas while **_**you**_** have all the fun." **

"Babysitting? That's his job." Poseidon scoffed.

** Under the whirlwind of clouds, Atlas bellowed in agony, "Let me out, curse you! I am your greatest warrior. Take my burden so I may fight!" **

** "Quiet!" the golden Titan roared. "You had your chance, Atlas. You failed. Kronos likes you just where you are. As for you, Krios, do your duty." **

"Burn."

"Shut it, Hermes."

"Sorry, Artemis."

** "And if you need more warriors?" Krios asked. "Our treacherous nephew in the tuxedo will not do you much good in a fight."**

"Treacherous nephew in the tuxedo..." Hera frowned, who was the nephew?

** The golden Titan laughed. "Don't worry about him. Besides, the gods can barely handle our first little challenge. They have no idea how many others we have in store. Mark my words, in a few days time, Olympus will be in ruins, and we will meet here again to celebrate the dawn of the Sixth Age!" **

** The golden Titan erupted into flames and disappeared. **

** "Oh, sure," Krios grumbled. "He gets to erupt into flames. I get to wear these stupid ram's horns." **

"Suck it up, Princess." Ares snorted.

** The scene shifted. Now I was outside the pavilion, hiding in the shadows of a Greek column. A boy stood next to me, eavesdropping on the Titans. He had dark silky hair, pale skin, and dark clothes- my friend Nico di Angelo, the son of Hades. **

"I'm back!" Nico hollered.

** He looked straight at me, his expression grim. "You see, Percy?" he whispered. "You're running out of time. Do you really think you can beat them without my plan?" **

"What's the plan? And why hasn't Percy used it already?" Poseidon asked Triton.

** His words washed over me as cold as the ocean floor, and my dreams went black. **

** "Percy?" a deep voice said. **

** My head felt like it had been microwaved in aluminium foil**

"Ooh, that's gotta hurt." Apollo cringed.

"How would you know?" Hermes asked.

"Shut it, tourist."

**I opened my eyes and saw a large shadowy figure looming over me. **

** "Beckendorf?" I asked hopefully. **

** "No, brother." **

** My eyes refocused. I was looking at a Cyclops-a misshapen face, ratty brown hair, one big brown eye full of concern. "Tyson?" **

"It's gonna be one giant family reunion." Triton grinned.

**My brother broke into a toothy grin. "Yay! Your brain works!"**

"Tyson, sweetie, Percy doesn't have a brain." Annabeth said sweetly.

**I wasn't so sure. My body felt weightless and cold. My voice sounded wrong. I could hear Tyson, but it was more like I was hearing vibrations inside my skull, not the regular sounds. I sat up, and a gossamer sheet floated away. I was on a bed made of silky woven kelp, in a room panelled with abalone shell. Glowing pearls the size of basketballs floated around the ceiling, providing light. I was under water. **

"Let's see which palace is better, shall we, Brothers?" Hades dared Poseidon and Zeus.

** Now, being the son of Poseidon and all, I was okay with this. I can breathe underwater just fine, and my clothes don't even get wet unless I want them to. But it was still a bit of a shock when a hammerhead shark drifted through the bedroom window, regarded me, and then swam calmly out the opposite side of the room. **

"Okay then..." Apollo drifted off.

** "Where-" **

** "Daddy's palace," Tyson said. **

** Under different circumstances, I would've been excited.**

"Bad timing." Hera frowned.

**I'd never visited Poseidon's realm, and I'd been dreaming about it for years. But my head hurt. My shirt was still speckled with burn marks from the explosion. My arm and leg wounds had healed-just being in the ocean can do that for me, given enough time-but I still felt like I'd been trampled by a Laistrygonian soccer team in cleats. **

"Now that, I haven't gone through." Apollo pointed out.

** "How long-" **

** "We found you last night," Tyson said, "sinking through the water." **

** "The **_**Princess Andromeda**_**?" **

** "Went ka-boom," Tyson confirmed. **

** "Beckendorf was on board. Did you find . . ." Tyson's face darkened. "No sign of him. I am sorry, brother." I stared out the window into deep blue water. Beckendorf was supposed to go to college in the fall. He had a girlfriend, lots of friends, his whole life ahead of him.**

"Life's unfair." Hades grumbled. Nico looked at him when Hades wasn't looking back; yeah, life was unfair.

**He couldn't be **_**gone. **_** Maybe he'd made it off the ship like I had. Maybe he'd jumped over the side . . . and what? He couldn't have survived a hundred-foot fall into the water like I could. He couldn't have put enough distance between himself and the explosion. **

** I knew in my gut he was dead. He'd sacrificed himself to take out the **_**Princess Andromeda, **_**and I had abandoned him.**

Zeus and Hera shared a concerned look, they knew the battle would be ruff but it's only just beginning and there are major fatalities.

**I thought about my dream: the Titans discussing the explosion as if it didn't matter, Nico di Angelo warning me that I would never beat Kronos without following his plan-a dangerous idea I'd been avoiding for more than a year. **

Poseidon eyed up Nico, concerned about his state of mind and Percy's, if he goes along with the plan.

** A distant blast shook the room. Green light blazed outside, turning the whole sea as bright as noon. **

** "What was that?" I asked. **

** Tyson looked worried. "Daddy will explain. Come, he is blowing up monsters." **

** The palace might have been the most amazing place I'd ever seen if it hadn't been in the process of getting destroyed. **

"What is the most amazing place you've ever seen then?" Poseidon asked his son. Percy sat back and thought about it for a moment before answering, "Camp Half-Blood."

**We swam to the end of a long hallway and shot upward on a geyser. As we rose over the rooftops I caught my breath- well, if you can catch your breath underwater. **

"Yeah, you can. Wait, what?" Apollo asked, stunned, before catching on and beginning to laugh.

** The palace was as big as the city on Mount Olympus, with wide courtyards, gardens, and columned pavilions. The gardens were sculpted with coral colonies and glowing sea plants. Twenty or thirty buildings were made of abalone, white but gleaming with rainbow colors. Fish and octopi darted in and out of the windows. The paths were lined with glowing pearls like Christmas lights. **

"Even during war, my palace is beautiful." Poseidon sighed.

** The main courtyard was filled with warriors-mermen with fish tails from the waist down and human bodies from the waist up, except their skin was blue, which I'd never known before. Some were tending the wounded. Some were sharpening spears and swords. One passed us, swimming in a hurry. His eyes were bright green, like that stuff they put in glo-sticks, and his teeth were shark teeth. They don't show you stuff like that in **_**The Little Mermaid.**_

"Don't talk about _The Little Mermaid _to me." Triton muttered. He was still bitter about a character being named after him.

**Outside the main courtyard stood large fortifications-towers, walls, and antisiege weapons-but most of these had been smashed to ruins. Others were blazing with a strange green light that I knew well- Greek fire, which can burn even underwater. **

** Beyond this, the sea floor stretched into gloom. I could see battles raging-flashes of energy, explosions, the glint of armies clashing. A regular human would've found it too dark to see. Heck, a regular human would've been crushed by the pressure and frozen by the cold. Even my heat-sensitive eyes couldn't make out exactly what was going on. **

** At the edge of the palace complex, a temple with a red coral roof exploded, sending fire and debris streaming in slow motion across the farthest gardens. Out of the darkness above, an enormous form appeared-a squid larger than any skyscraper. It was surrounded by a glittering cloud of dust-at least I thought it was dust, until I realized it was a swarm of mermen trying to attack the monster. **

"Mermaids are real?" Thalia said wondrously.

"No duh." Triton scoffed. He smiled afterwards, he didn't want anyone to think he was gonna be all ass-like again.

"Too bad, so sad, Mr. Little Mermaid." Thalia sassed.

"Shut up." Triton muttered.

**The squid descended on the palace and swatted its tentacles, smashing a whole column of warriors. Then a brilliant arc of blue light shot from the rooftop of one of the tallest buildings. The light hit the giant squid, and the monster dissolved like food colouring in water. **

** "Daddy," Tyson said, pointing to where the light had come from. **

_**"He**_** did that?" I suddenly felt more hopeful. My dad had unbelievable powers. He was the god of the sea.**

"Yes, I am."

**He could deal with this attack, right? **

"I hope so."

**Maybe he'd let me help. **

"No way in hell."

** "Have you been in the fight?" I asked Tyson in awe. "Like bashing heads with your awesome Cyclops strength and stuff?" Tyson pouted, and immediately I knew I'd asked a bad question, **

Hera shook her head. Halfbloods _always_ ask the wrong questions.

** "I have been . . . fixing weapons," he mumbled. "Come. Let's go find Daddy." **

** I know this might sound weird to people with, like, regular parents, but I'd only seen my dad four or five times in my life, and never for more than a few minutes.**

"It's more than what others get." Thalia muttered but was loud enough for everyone to hear.

"We were lucky, Annabeth and I, we went on all these quests and they were always life and death, so we had to see our parents." Percy defended himself and Annabeth softly to his cousin.

"It's cool, I mean. I was a tree for a few years." Thalia smiled at her cousin.

**The Greek gods don't exactly show up for their kids' basketball games. Still, I thought I would recognize Poseidon on sight. **

** I was wrong. **

"Oh dear." Poseidon said, frantically.

"Oh dear, brother?" Hades quoted Poseidon, questioning the phrase.

** The roof of the temple was a big open deck that had been set up as a command center. A mosaic on the floor showed an exact map of the palace grounds and the surrounding ocean, but the mosaic moved. Coloured stone tiles representing different armies and sea monsters shifted around as the forces changed position. Buildings that collapsed in real life also collapsed in the picture. Standing around the mosaic, grimly studying the battle, was a strange assortment of warriors, but none of them looked like my dad. I was searching for a big guy with a good tan and a black beard, wearing Bermuda shorts and a Hawaiian shirt. **

"Thanks, I've worked hard for it over the years." Poseidon said. He raised his eyebrows at those who raised their's first. Couldn't a man have a good tan and be proud of it?

** There was nobody like that. One guy was a merman with two fish tails instead of one. His skin was green, his armor studded with pearls. **

"Me!" Triton smiled.

**His black hair was tied in a ponytail, and he looked young though it's hard to tell with non-humans. They could be a thousand years old or three.**

"I'm closer to the thousand." Triton commented.

"I guessed."

**Standing next to him was an old man with a bushy white beard and gray hair. **

Percy smiled at his father meekly.

**His battle armor seemed to weigh him down. He had green eyes and smile wrinkles around his eyes, but he wasn't smiling now.**

"I wouldn't have been smiling either." Demeter frowned.

"I wouldn't have either, I'd be having the time of my life." Ares said, sitting back into his throne. Artemis rolled her eyes at the God and moved back to her throne, giving Percy his seat back and letting Thalia return to her's.

**He was studying the map and leaning on a large metal staff. To his right stood a beautiful woman in green armor with flowing black hair and strange little horns like crab claws. **

"Would Amphitrite be offended or flattered?" Hestia asked.

"Offended, offended all the way." Hera replied.

**And there was a dolphin-just a regular dolphin, but it was staring at the map intently. **

** "Delphin," the old man said. **

"Delphin the dolphin?" Artemis raised an eyebrow elegantly.

"How original." Aphrodite said, dryly.

**"Send Palaemon and his legion of sharks to the western front. We have to neutralize those leviathans." The dolphin spoke in a chattering voice, but I could understand it in my mind: **_**Yes, lord! **_** It sped away. **

** I looked in dismay at Tyson, then back at the old man. **

** It didn't seem possible, but . . . "Dad?" I asked. The old man looked up. I recognized the twinkle in his eyes, but his face . . . he looked like he'd aged forty years. **

"Ha! You're an old man." Hades chuckled.

"Ha! Zeus is probably worse. Ha! The underworld's gonna be all clogged up. Funny, isn't it?" Poseidon laughed cynically.

** "Hello, Percy." **

** "What-what happened to you?" **

** Tyson nudged me. He was shaking his head so hard I was afraid it would fall off, but Poseidon didn't look offended. **

** "It's all right, Tyson," he said. "Percy, excuse my appearance. The war has been hard on me." **

** "But you're immortal," I said quietly. "You can look . . . any way you want." **

"Chiron really needs to teach you all more about our world, doesn't he?" Zeus frowned, he should really look into that.

** "I reflect the state of my realm," he said. "And right now that state is quite grim. Percy, I should introduce you-I'm afraid you just missed my lieutenant Delphin, God of the Dolphins. This is my, er, wife, Amphitrite. My dear- **_**" **_

"Mother is not going to like that." Triton cringed.

** The lady in green armor stared at me coldly, then crossed her arms and said, "Excuse me, my lord. I am needed in the battle." She swam away. **

"Wow, not even I'm that rude or at least that cowardly in front of my husband's bastards. No offence, Thalia." Hera commented on Amphitrite's curt behaviour.

"Heaps taken." Thalia muttered under her breath to Grover, who snickered in response.

** I felt pretty awkward, but I guess I couldn't blame her. I'd never thought about it much, but my dad had an immortal wife. All his romances with mortals, including with my mom . . . well, Amphitrite probably didn't like that much. **

"Understatement." Apollo sang.

** Poseidon cleared his throat. "Yes, well . . . and this is my son Triton. Er, my **_**other**_** son." **

"Don't stutter again, Brother." Zeus shook his head.

** "Your son and heir," the green dude corrected. His double fish tails swished back and forth. He smiled at me, but there was no friendliness in his eyes.**

"I'm gonna be a total jerk ass, aren't I?" Triton asked Percy, who nodded in response.

**"Hello, Perseus Jackson. Come to help at last?" **

** He acted like I was late or lazy. If you can blush underwater, I probably did. **

"You can, but it's faint." Poseidon supplied.

"It's not over is it?" Triton asked Percy, wanting the asshole bits to be over.

"Nope."

** "Tell me what to do," I said. **

** Triton smiled like that was a cute suggestion-like I was a slightly amusing dog that had barked for him or something.**

"Why don't I like you?" Triton asked Percy.

"You probably feel overshadowed by your father's new favourite son and since you've lived for thousands of years, you feel like you know more about combat than your little brother who hasn't lived a fraction of the years you've lived throughout your time." Nico said matter-of-factly. He was met with looks of awe and his eyes quickly flashed to his father, who was looking at him as if he were a puzzle Hades couldn't quite work out.

**He turned to Poseidon. "I will see to the front line, Father. Don't worry. **_**I**_** will not fail." **

"Is he insinuating something?" Aphrodite asked.

"Oh, he's insinuating heaps." Hermes answered the love goddess.

** He nodded politely to Tyson. How come I didn't get that much respect? **

"Cyclopes aren't uncommon and are probably something Triton has dealt with. Demigod brothers, he hasn't and he doesn't know how to interact with you." Athena said in a typical fashion.

**Then he shot off into the water. **

** Poseidon sighed. He raised his staff, and it changed into his regular weapon-a huge three-pointed trident. The tip glowed with blue light, and the water around it boiled with energy. **

** "I'm sorry about that," he told me. **

** A huge sea serpent appeared from above us and spiraled down toward the roof. It was bright orange with a fanged mouth big enough to swallow a gymnasium. **

** Hardly looking up, Poseidon pointed his trident at the beast and zapped it with blue energy. **_**Ka-boom! **_** The monster burst into a million goldfish, which all swam off in terror. **

** "My family is anxious," Poseidon continued as if nothing had happened. **

"How do gods do that?" Annabeth muttered to Percy.

**"The battle against Oceanus is going poorly." He pointed to the edge of the mosaic. With the butt of his trident he tapped the image of a merman larger than the rest, with the horns of a bull. He appeared to be riding a chariot pulled by crawfish, and instead of a sword he wielded a live serpent. **

Nico and Thalia snorted. Fighting with a snake? That's ridiculous.

** "Oceanus," I said, trying to remember. "The Titan of the sea?" Poseidon nodded. "He was neutral in the first war of gods and Titans. But Kronos has convinced him to fight. This is . . . well, it's not a good sign. Oceanus would not commit unless he was sure he could pick the winning side." **

** "He looks stupid," I said, trying to sound upbeat. **

"And probably failing."

**"I mean, who fights with a snake?" **

** "Daddy will tie it in knots," Tyson said firmly. **

"That's a good idea. Father, you should do that." Triton suggested.

**Poseidon smiled, but he looked weary. "I appreciate your faith. We have been at war almost a year now. My powers are taxed. And still he finds new forces to throw at me-sea monsters so ancient I had forgotten about them." **

"That's the problem with immortality, you tend to forget the beginning." Zeus said wisely. Annabeth smiled at Percy, who took her hand. The action didn't go unmissed by Aphrodite, Thalia, Nico and Grover but the rest of the council remained oblivious.

** I heard an explosion in the distance. About half a mile away, a mountain of coral disintegrated under the weight of two giant creatures. I could dimly make out their shapes. One was a lobster. The other was a giant humanoid like a Cyclops, but he was surrounded by a flurry of limbs. At first I thought he wearing a bunch of giant octopi. Then I realized they were his own arms-a hundred flailing, fighting arms. **

** "Briares!" I said. **

** I was happy to see him, but he looked like he was fighting for his life. **

"It's getting to the point where you are." Demeter murmured.

**He was the last of his kind-a Hundred-Handed One, cousin of the Cyclopes. We'd saved him from Kronos's prison last summer, **

"Please don't tell me he's going to explain the whole book." Ares complained.

"He isn't." Triton said, reading ahead.

**and I knew he'd come to help Poseidon, but I hadn't heard of him since. **

** "He fights well," Poseidon said. "I wish we had a whole army like him, but he is the only one." **

"But it's something Oceanus can't get." Grover pointed out.

** I watched as Briares bellowed in rage and picked up the lobster, which thrashed and snapped its pincers. He threw it off the coral mountain, and the lobster disappeared into the darkness. Briares swam after it, his hundred arms spinning like the blades of a motorboat. **

** "Percy, we may not have much time," my dad said. "Tell me of your mission. Did you see Kronos?" **

** I told him everything, though my voice choked up when I explained about Beckendorf. **

"No one can blame you for that." Hestia smiled softly.

**I looked down at the courtyards below and saw hundreds of wounded mermen lying on makeshift cots. I saw rows of coral mounds that must've been hastily made graves. I realized Beckendorf wasn't the first death. He was only one of hundreds, maybe thousands. I'd never felt so angry and helpless. **

Terrible losses but brilliant encouragement for those fighting, avenging death is the perfect motivator in times like this, Zeus mused.

** Poseidon stroked his beard. "Percy, Beckendorf chose a heroic death. You bear no blame for that. Kronos's army will be m disarray. Many were destroyed." **

** "But we didn't kill him, did we?" **

** As I said it, I knew it was a naive hope. We might blow up his ship and disintegrate his monsters, but a Titan lord wouldn't be so easy to kill. **

** "No," Poseidon admitted. "But you've bought our side some time." **

** "There were demigods on that ship," I said, thinking of the kid I'd seen in the stairwell. Somehow I'd allowed myself to concentrate on the monsters and Kronos. I'd convinced myself that destroying their ship was all right because they were evil, they were sailing to attack my city, and besides, they couldn't really be permanently killed. Monsters just vaporized and re-formed eventually. But demigods . . . **

"You bought us valuable time, Perseus. Don't doubt that." Hades said firmly.

** Poseidon put his hand on my shoulder. "Percy, there were only a few demigod warriors aboard that ship, and they all chose to battle for Kronos. Perhaps some heeded your warning and escaped. If they did not . . . they chose their path." **

** "They were brainwashed!" I said. "Now they're dead and Kronos is still alive. That's supposed to make me feel better?" I glared at the mosaic-little tile explosions destroying tile monsters. It seemed so easy when it was just a picture. Tyson put his arm around me. If anybody else had tried that, I would've pushed him away, but Tyson was too big and stubborn. **

"Have I mentioned how much I love Tyson?" Demeter smiled.

"Heaps of times." Apollo rolled his eyes.

**He hugged me whether I wanted it or not. "Not your fault, brother. Kronos does not explode good. Next time we will use a big stick." **

** "Percy," my father said. "Beckendorf's sacrifice wasn't in vain. You have scattered the invasion force. New York will be safe for a time, which frees the other Olympians to deal with the bigger threat." **

** "The bigger threat?" I thought about what the golden Titan had said in my dream: **_**The gods have answered the challenge. Soon they will be destroyed. **_

"Joy to the world." Artemis muttered darkly.

** A shadow passed over my father's face. "You've had enough sorrow for one day. Ask Chiron when you return to camp." **

** "Return to camp? But you're in trouble here. I want to help!" **

** "You can't, Percy. Your job is elsewhere." **

** I couldn't believe I was hearing this. I looked at Tyson for backup. **

** My brother chewed his lip. "Daddy . . . Percy can fight with a sword. He is good." **

"Yeah, we know that. Trust me, we're reading a book about it." Apollo said.

** "I know that," Poseidon said gently. **

** "Dad, I can help," I said. "I know I can. You're not going to hold out here much longer." **

** A fireball launched into the sky from behind the enemy lines. I thought Poseidon would deflect it or something, but it landed on the outer corner of the yard and exploded, sending mermen tumbling through the water. Poseidon winced as if he'd just been stabbed. **

** "Return to camp," he insisted. "And tell Chiron it is time." **

** "For what?" **

** "You must hear the prophecy. The **_**entire**_** prophecy." I didn't need to ask him which prophecy. I'd been hearing about the "Great Prophecy" for years, but nobody would ever tell me the whole thing. All I knew was that I was supposed to make a decision that would decide the fate of the world-but no pressure. **

** "What if **_**this**_** is the decision?" I said. "Staying here to fight, or leaving? What if I leave and you . . ." **

** I couldn't say **_**die. **_

"You can't say we don't care." Nico mused.

**Gods weren't supposed to die, but I'd seen it happen. Even if they didn't die, they could be reduced to nearly nothing, exiled, imprisoned in the depths of Tartarus like Kronos had been. **

** "Percy, you must go," Poseidon insisted. "I don't know what your final decision will be, but your fight lies in the world above. If nothing else, you must warn your friends at camp. Kronos knew your plans. You have a spy. We will hold here. We have no choice." Tyson gripped my hand desperately. "I will miss you, brother!" Watching us, our father seemed to age another ten years. **

"Getting a bit sentimental there, brother." Hades smirked.

"You sound like Tyson." Nico commented. Hades grimaced, he liked Tyson, he just didn't want to be him.

** "Tyson, you have work to do as well, my son. They need you in the armoury." **

** Tyson pouted some more. **

** "I will go," he sniffled. He hugged me so hard he almost cracked my ribs. "Percy, be careful! Do not let monsters kill you dead!" **

** I tried to nod confidently, but it was too much for the big guy.**

"The poor dear." Demeter sighed.

**He sobbed and swam away toward the armoury, where his cousins were fixing spears and swords. **

** "You should let him fight," I told my father. "He hates being stuck in the armoury. Can't you tell?" **

"Tyson's too cute to die." Aphrodite pouted.

** Poseidon shook his head. "It is bad enough I must send you into danger. Tyson is too young. I must protect him." **

** "You should trust him," I said. "Not try to protect him." Poseidon's eyes flared. I thought I'd gone too far, but then he looked down at the mosaic and his shoulders sagged. On the tiles, the mermaid guy in the crawfish chariot was coming closer to the palace. **

** "Oceanus approaches," my father said. "I must meet him in battle." I'd never been scared for a god before, but I didn't see how my dad could face this Titan and win. **

"Thanks for the vouch of confidence, Percy." Triton rolled his eyes.

** "I will hold," Poseidon promised. "I will not give up my domain. Just tell me, Percy, do you still have the birthday gift I gave you last summer?" **

** I nodded and pulled out my camp necklace. It had a bead for every summer I'd been at Camp Half-Blood, but since last year I'd also kept a sand dollar on the cord. **

"Safe place to save it. It'll always be on you." Hera approved.

**My father had given it to me for my fifteenth birthday. He'd told me I would know when to "spend it," but so far I hadn't figured out what he meant. All I knew was that it didn't fit the vending machines in the school cafeteria. **

"Great way to spend your money, Percy." Triton said sarcastically.

** "The time is coming," he promised. "With luck, I will see you for your birthday next week, and we will have a proper celebration." He smiled, and for a moment I saw the old light in his eyes. Then the entire sea grew dark in front of us, like an inky storm was rolling in. Thunder crackled, which should've been impossible underwater. A huge icy presence was approaching. I sensed a wave of fear roll through the armies below us. **

** "I must assume my true godly form," Poseidon said. "Go- and good luck, my son." **

"That's a bit formal for you, Poseidon." Hestia smiled. Her brother was truly scared for Percy and for himself.

** I wanted to encourage him, to hug him or something, but knew better than to stick around. When a god assumes his true form, the power is so great that any mortal looking on him will disintegrate. **

** "Good-bye, Father," I managed. **

Thalia raised her eyebrows at Percy, who'd always been the informal one out of the Big Three cousins.

** Then I turned away. I willed the ocean currents to aid me. Water swirled around me, and I shot toward the surface at speeds that would've caused any normal human to pop like a balloon. When I looked back, all I could see were flashes of green and blue as my father fought the Titan, and the sea itself was torn apart by the two armies.  
**"That's the chapter." Triton said. The chapters were getting longer, more detailed. It seemed like the books matured as Percy did. **  
**

* * *

_Hey FanFictioners,_

_What'd you think? Yay or nay? I received 100 emails from last night about the alerts and the favourites this story received and I must say that was the biggest response ever! I re-did A Twist To An Immortal Assembly's summary and I like it heaps more. _

_I received a comment regarding how sometimes conversations become scarce. This is because it's hard to do their reactions or it's hard to describe them because you don't take great significance to the paragraphs yourself. _

_Don't forget to alert, favourite or review!_

_Pattern of Night._

_*I'm on live journal under the username neverbeentold as a back up account. It's underdeveloped and I haven't got much up yet but I will.* _


	4. C3: I Get A Sneak Peek At My Death

**CHAPTER THREE**

**I GET A SNEAK PEEK AT**

** MY DEATH**

Perfection was a myth, but then again, so was she. The beauty of the sea, they called her. Nothing and nobody controlled her. She was colder than the frozen waters in the arctic and harder to reach than the moon. When her husband took her as his, she had no choice in the manner and yet she tried her best to please him. She was wise in counsel, bore him a son and didn't comment on his numerous affairs and several illegitimate children. He never flaunted his lovers in front of her though, always tried to remain secretive and while she knew about the affairs, she appreciated his attempts to make them private.

But as the years flew past, her husband neglected to hide his affairs from her and her son. He neglected to provide her, care for her and while they'd never been in love in the first place, he didn't love her or pretend to love her like he once did.

And then, _he_ came. Another offspring from yet another slut of her husband's, the first in decades. A boy, an innocent boy destined for a life of horrors. She never revealed her husband's child to the others, always kept it a secret.

Because whether she liked it or not, Poseidon made her frozen arctic layers defrost, he brought her the moon and more. People know Poseidon took Amphitrite as his wife, they just never knew that she took him as her husband and so much more.

* * *

"Who wants to read next?" Triton asked, holding up the closed book. His question was answered by silence and people found themselves avoiding Triton's sea green eyes.

"You're all a big bunch of babies, I'll do it." Hades volunteered, rolling his eyes at everyone's reluctance to read the chapter.

"Chapter Three, I Get A Sneak Peek At My Death." Hades announced.

"Happy title there, Percy." Nico rolled his eyes.

** If you want to be popular at Camp Half-Blood, don't come back from a mission with bad news. **

"But you always come back with bad news, Percy. Why do Annabeth, Thalia, Nico and Grover hang out with you?" Hermes asked Percy, teasing him.

"I'll let you know a secret." Thalia leaned in, looking from side to side as if she were to spill her guts out. "He tortures us." She whispered, her voice hollow. Annabeth cracked a smile and joined her friend and leaned forward as well. "It's terrible." Annabeth cried.

Percy sat back, confused as underworld. A few people shot him some weird looks, Annabeth and Thalia shook their heads and burst out into thousands of giggles.

Girls, Percy rolled his eyes.

"I'm just going to read now." Hades said, indicating to the book.

** Word of my arrival spread as soon as I walked out of the ocean. Our beach is on the North Shore of Long Island, and it's enchanted so most people can't even see it. People don't just **_**appear**_** on the beach unless they're demigods or gods or really, really lost pizza delivery guys. (It's happened-but that's another story.) **

"What happened?" Apollo asked, more interested in lost pizza guys than Percy finding out how and if he's going to die.

"Not this again." Grover moaned.

"I love this story!" Thalia jumped in her seat. "Tell them, Annie."

"Do I have to?"

"Yes!"

"Do you have to continue this excessive girlishness?" Hades complained.

Thalia opened her mouth to retort but Nico elbowed her side. When she turned to face him, she was met with a warning look. She gave him a confused stare. He shook his head and mouthed 'I'll tell you later.'

**Anyway, that afternoon the lookout on duty was Connor Stoll from the Hermes cabin. When he spotted me, he got so excited he fell out of his tree. **

"One unique kid you got there, Hermes." Hestia said ironically.

"Yeah, but he has a sort-of twin." Hermes acknowledged.

"Uh, sorry. What?" The goddess of the hearth asked.

"He has an older brother Travis. Same mom and everything but Travis is a few years older. They're so in-sync people refer to them as the Stoll brothers and sometimes, Stoll twins." Grover replied for Hermes when the god became stuck on how to explain the relationship between the Stoll brothers.

**Then he blew the conch horn to signal the camp and ran to greet me. **

** Connor had a crooked smile that matched his crooked sense of humour. He's a pretty nice guy, but you should always keep one hand on your wallet when he's around, and do not, under any circumstances, give him access to shaving cream unless you want to find your sleeping bag full of it.**

Hermes smirked. Sounds like they'd get along swimmingly, did he just think the word swimmingly? Better not mention that to the water trio.

**He's got curly brown hair and is a little shorter than his brother, Travis, which is the only way I can tell them apart. They are both so unlike my old enemy Luke it's hard to believe they're all sons of Hermes. **

"It's hard to believe Poseidon, Zeus and Hades are brothers and they've got the same DNA through and through. Even though things like genetics may be mute when it comes to gods. But back to my main train of thought, if it's hard to imagine the Big Three as brothers, it must be extremely difficult to think that Travis, Connor and Luke are just half-brothers." Annabeth said quickly, her voice lingering on Luke's name. After being given glares and confused looks, Annabeth turned a deep red.

** "Percy!" he yelled. "What happened? Where's Beckendorf?" Then he saw my expression, and his smile melted. "Oh, no. Poor Silena. Holy Zeus, when she finds out . . ." **

"Nothing's worse than an upset Aphrodite or an upset half-blood for that matter." Ares shuddered.

** Together we climbed the sand dunes. A few hundred yards away, people were already streaming toward us, smiling and excited. **_**Percy's back, **_**they were probably thinking. **_**He's saved the day! Maybe he brought souvenirs! **_

"I highly doubt that." Demeter smiled kindly.

"I wouldn't." Apollo snorted.

** I stopped at the dining pavilion and waited for them. No sense rushing down there to tell them what a loser I was. **

"They already knew you were a loser." Grover told Percy, trying to be comforting.

"Yeah, they just didn't realise how big a loser you truly were." Ares snorted, causing Grover to turn beet red.

** I gazed across the valley and tried to remember how Camp HalfBlood looked the first time I ever saw it. That seemed like a bajillion years ago. **

"How could five years sound like a bajillion years ago?" Triton questioned.

"So much happened. We grew up so quickly in a short span of time." Grover said, sounding poised and wise for possibly the first time in front of the gods.

** From the dining pavilion, you could see pretty much everything. Hills ringed the valley. On the tallest, Half-Blood Hill, Thalia's pine tree stood with the Golden Fleece hanging from its branches, magically protecting the camp from its enemies.**

"I'm just that amazing!" Thalia smiled.

**The guard dragon Peleus was so big now I could see him from here-curled around the tree trunk, lending up smoke signals as he snored. **

** To my right spread the woods. To my left, the canoe lake glittered and the climbing wall glowed from the lava pouring down its side. Twelve cabins- one for each Olympian god-made a horseshoe pattern around the commons area. Farther south were the strawberry fields, the armoury, and the four-story Big House with its sky blue paint job and its bronze eagle weathervane. **

** In some ways, the camp hadn't changed. But you couldn't see the war by looking at the buildings or the fields. You could see it in the faces of the demigods and satyrs and naiads coming up the hill. **

The scars of battle were some of the most permanent scars one could have. Wars left emotional scars as well as physical ones.

**There weren't as many at camp as four summers ago. Some had left and never come back. Some had died fighting.**

Hades sighed. More souls he had to take care of, worst straw drawing ever!

**Others-we tried not to talk about them-had gone over to the enemy. **

A frown appeared on Hera's perfect face, where was their sense of family?

** The ones who were still here were battle-hardened and weary. There was little laughter at camp these days. Even the Hermes cabin didn't play so many pranks. It's hard to enjoy practical jokes when your whole life feels like one. **

Annabeth smiled sadly at Percy and grasped his hand in hers, the gesture was not missed by the council. Athena groaned quietly. She's going to have to talk to her daughter about her misplaced feelings.

** Chiron galloped into the pavilion first, which was easy for him since he's a white stallion from the waist down. His beard had grown wilder over the summer. He wore a green T-shirt that said MY OTHER CAR IS A CENTAUR and a bow slung over his back. **

** "Percy!" he said. "Thank the gods. But where . . ." Annabeth ran in right behind him, and I'll admit my heart did a little relay race in my chest when I saw her. **

A smug smile appeared on Annabeth's face.

**It's not that she tried to look good. **

Triton laughed at Percy, who was looking anywhere but his brother, his friends and basically the whole room.

**We'd been doing so many combat missions lately, she hardly brushed her curly blond hair anymore, and she didn't care what clothes she was wearing- usually the same old orange camp T-shirt and jeans, and once in a while her bronze armor.**

Aphrodite smirked; she made him fall head over heads for Annabeth. She must really like Percy in the future if she's making his love life hell.

**Her eyes were stormy gray. Most of the time we couldn't get through a conversation without trying to strangle each other.**

"It's true." Grover rolled his eyes.

"Everyone acts like Kronos is going to kill Percy but I personally think it's gonna be Annabeth." Thalia chuckled, only half joking.

**Still, just seeing her made me feel fuzzy in the head.**

Athena sent a death glare to Aphrodite.

**Last summer, before Luke had turned into Kronos and everything went sour, there had been a few times when I thought maybe . . . well, that we might get past the strangle-each other phase. **

"And then what?" Demeter asked, obliviously.

"Uh, nothing." Percy replied, flushed.

"There's no phase called nothing, Percy. And the phase after trying to strangle-each other phase is friendship and after listening to your thoughts, that's not what you want." Demeter told Percy.

** "What happened?" She grabbed my arm. "Is Luke-" **

** "The ship blew up," I said. "He wasn't destroyed. I don't know where-" **

** Silena Beauregard pushed through the crowd. Her hair wasn't combed and she wasn't even wearing makeup, which wasn't like her. **

"Oh god." Aphrodite almost whimpered in sympathy for Silena.

** "Where's Charlie?" she demanded, looking around like he might be hiding. **

** I glanced at Chiron helplessly. **

** The old centaur cleared his throat. "Silena, my dear, let's talk about this at the Big House-" **

** "No," she muttered. "No. **_**No." **_

** She started to cry, and the rest of us stood around, too stunned to speak. We'd already lost so many people over the summer, but this was the worst. With Beckendorf gone, it felt like someone had stolen the anchor for the entire camp. **

** Finally Clarisse from the Ares cabin came forward. **

Ares' eyes widened as he looked at Aphrodite.

**She put her arm around Silena. They had one of the strangest friendships ever- a daughter of the war god and a daughter of the love goddess- but ever since Silena had given Clarisse advice last summer about her first boyfriend, Clarisse had decided she was Silena's personal bodyguard. **

** Clarisse was dressed in her blood red combat armor, her brown hair tucked into a bandana. She was as big and beefy as a rugby player, with a permanent scowl on her face, but she spoke gently to Silena. **

** "Come on, girl," she said. "Let's get to the Big House. I'll make you some hot chocolate." **

"Huh, who knew a child of Ares could be so... sweet." Artemis mused.

"Clarisse isn't sweet, she just has a soft spot for her friend who's boyfriend just died." Ares defended Clarisse and himself.

** Everyone turned and wandered off in twos and threes, heading back to the cabins. Nobody was excited to see me now. Nobody wanted to hear about the blown-up ship. **

"Beckendorf just died and they're walking back to the cabins?" Hera muttered.

"People were probably dying every day." Zeus murmured to his wife.

"Great, the underworld's going to be blocked because of this war." Hades groaned.

"Those people died for you guys, including you, Hades. Try to respect them and not worry about the clogging." Nico scolded his father, not caring if Hades disapproved. Nico's father made it perfectly clear he didn't care, so what's the harm?

** Only Annabeth and Chiron stayed behind. **

** Annabeth wiped a tear from her cheek. "I'm glad you're not dead, Seaweed Brain." **

** "Thanks," I said. "Me too." **

Thalia rolled her eyes.

"I'm glad too." Poseidon added.

** Chiron put a hand on my shoulder. "I'm sure you did everything you could, Percy. Will you tell us what happened?" **

** I didn't want to go through it again, but I told them the story, including my dream about the Titans. I left out the detail about Nico. Nico had made me promise not to tell anybody about his plan until I made up my mind, and the plan was so scary I didn't mind keeping it a secret.**

"It's not _that_ bad." Nico shook his head.

"It's bloody terrifying." Percy cried, his eyes wide.  
"Yeah, but it's not the worst plan ever."

"True." Percy admitted.

** Chiron gazed down at the valley. "We must call a war council immediately, to discuss this spy, and other matters." **

** "Poseidon mentioned another threat," I said. "Something even bigger than the **_**Princess Andromeda. **_** I thought it might be that challenge the Titan had mentioned in my dream." **

** Chiron and Annabeth exchanged looks, like they knew something I didn't.**

"They always know something you don't." Grover mused.

**I hated when they did that. **

"I would say I'm sorry but I'm really not." Annabeth smiled.

** "We will discuss that also," Chiron promised. **

** "One more thing." I took a deep breath. "When I talked to my father, he said to tell you it's time. I need to know the full prophecy." Chiron's shoulders sagged, but he didn't look surprised. "I've dreaded this day. Very well. Annabeth, we will show Percy the truth-all of **_**it.**_** Let's go to the attic." **

"Yay! We get to see my oracle!" Apollo cheered. "Ouch! Artemis, why did you do that?"

"You were acting like a child." Artemis said shortly.

** I'd been to the Big House attic three times before, which was three times more than I wanted to. **

"I'm sure it's not that bad." Triton rolled his eyes.

"It is." Thalia replied.

** A ladder led up from the top of the staircase. I wondered how Chiron was going to get up there, being half horse and all, but he didn't try. **

"Because it's impossible, Chiron knows that." Athena said matter of factly.

** "You know where it is," he told Annabeth. "Bring it down, please." Annabeth nodded. "Come on, Percy." **

** The sun was setting outside, so the attic was even darker and creepier than usual. Old hero trophies were slacked everywhere dented shields, pickled heads in jars from various monsters, a pair of fuzzy dice on a bronze plaque that read: STOLEN FROM CHRYSAOR'S HONDA CIVIC, BY GUS, SON OF HERMES, 1988. **

Hermes sighed. Gus was a good son.

** I picked up a curved bronze sword so badly bent it looked like the letter **_**M. **_** I could still see green stains on the metal from the magical poison that used to cover it. The tag was dated last summer. It read: **_**Scimitar of Kampê, destroyed in the Battle of the Labyrinth. **_

** "You remember Briares throwing those boulders?" I asked. Annabeth gave me a grudging smile. "And Grover causing a Panic?"**

"Feels like just yesterday." Percy smiled fondly.

"Probably because you just read all about it!" Thalia teased.

**We locked eyes. I thought of a different time last summer, under Mount St. Helens, when Annabeth thought I was going to die and she kissed me. **

** She cleared her throat and looked away. "Prophecy." **

** "Right." I put down the scimitar. "Prophecy." **

No one commented on the tension between Annabeth and Percy but they all knew it was there, how could you miss it?

**We walked over to the window. On a three-legged stool sat the Oracle-a shrivelled female mummy in a tie-dyed dress. Tufts of black hair clung to her skull. Glassy eyes stared out of her leathery face. Just looking at her made my skin crawl. **

Apollo groaned, so the oracle wasn't going to change bodies after all. The teens from the future looked at Hades, making him aware they knew and that it'd be talked about in the book.

** If you wanted to leave camp during the summer, it used to be you had to come up here to get a quest. This summer, that rule had been tossed. Campers left all the time on combat missions. We had no choice if we wanted to stop Kronos. **

Apollo groaned louder and got even noisier until his sister put a hand on his shoulder in particle comfort and particle warning.

** Still, I remembered too well the strange green mist-the spirit of the Oracle-that lived inside the mummy. She looked lifeless now, but whenever she spoke a prophecy, she moved. Sometimes fog gushed out of her mouth and created strange shapes. Once, she'd even left the attic and taken a little zombie stroll into the woods to deliver a message. **

"Weird." Triton commented randomly.

**I wasn't sure what she'd do for the "Great Prophecy." I half expected her to start tap dancing or something. **

** But she just sat there like she was dead-which she was. **

** "I never understood this," I whispered. **

** "What?" Annabeth asked. **

** "Why it's a mummy." **

** "Percy, she didn't used to be a mummy. For thousands of years the spirit of the Oracle lived inside a beautiful maiden. The spirit would be passed on from generation to generation. Chiron told me **_**she**_** was like that fifty years ago." Annabeth pointed at the mummy. "But she was the last." **

** "What happened?" **

** Annabeth started to say something, then apparently changed her mind.**

Hades and Nico raised their eyebrows at Annabeth, who looked away nervously.

**"Let's just do our job and get out of here." I looked nervously at the Oracle's withered face. "So what now?" Annabeth approached the mummy and held out her palms.**

**"O Oracle, the time is at hand. I ask for the Great Prophecy." I braced myself, but the mummy didn't move. Instead, Annabeth approached and unclasped one of its necklaces. I'd never paid too much attention to its jewellery before. I figured it was just hippie love beads and stuff. But when Annabeth turned toward me, she was holding a leather pouch-like a Native American medicine pouch on a cord braided with feathers. She opened the bag and took out a roll of parchment no bigger than her pinky. **

** "No way," I said. "You mean all these years, I've been asking about this stupid prophecy, and it's been right there around her neck?" **

The assembly laughed, eager to release the tension this particular chapter and the two chapters before it caused.

** "The time wasn't right," Annabeth said. "Believe me, Percy, I read this when I was ten years old, and I still have nightmares about it." **

"Way to encourage him, Annie." Thalia rolled her eyes.

"I was just trying to tell them the truth." Annabeth defended herself.

** "Great," I said. "Can I read it now?" **

** "Downstairs at the war council," Annabeth said. "Not in front of . . . you know." **

** I looked at the glassy eyes of the Oracle, and I decided not to argue. We headed downstairs to join the others. I didn't know it then, but it would be the last time I ever visited the attic. **

"Er, sorry, what?" Poseidon asked, his eyes beginning to bulge.

"Relax, Dad. I'm sure it's just a thing in the book that makes you think something's gonna happen but it doesn't and something else does instead." Triton tried to make his father relax.

** The senior counsellors had gathered around the Ping-Pong table. **

"Did you just say Ping-Pong table?" Hestia asked.

"That's what it says." Hades replied, double checking the book.

**Don't ask me why, but the rec room had become the camp's informal headquarters for war councils. When Annabeth, Chiron, and I came in, though, it looked more like a shouting match. **

"Classic war council. Nothing to worry about." Ares waved.

** Clarisse was still in full battle gear. Her electric spear was strapped to her back. (Actually, her **_**second**_** electric spear, since I'd broken the first one. She called the spear "Maimer." Behind her back, everybody else called it "Lamer.")**

Poseidon snorted and Nico snickered, having not heard the nickname and lack of fear of Ares's rage.

**She had her boar-shaped helmet under one arm and a knife at her belt. **

** She was in the midst of yelling at Michael Yew, the new head counsellor for Apollo, which looked kind of funny since Clarisse was a foot taller. Michael had taken over the Apollo cabin after Lee Fletcher died in battle last summer. Michael stood four feet six, with another two feet of attitude. He reminded me of a ferret, with a pointy nose and scrunched-up features-either because he scowled so much or because he spent too much time looking down the shaft of an arrow. **

Apollo opened his mouth, offended for his son, but shut it so he didn't face his sister's wrath.

** "It's **_**our**_** loot!" he yelled, standing on his tiptoes so he could get in Clarisse's face. "If you don't like it, you can kiss my quiver!" Around the table, people were trying not to laugh-the Stoll brothers, Pollux from the Dionysus cabin, Katie Gardner from Demeter.**

And the whole entire assembly par Apollo.

**Even Jake Mason, the hastily appointed new counsellor from Hephaestus, managed a faint smile. Only Silena Beauregard didn't pay any attention. She sat beside Clarisse and stared vacantly at the Ping Pong net. Her eyes were red and puffy. A cup of hot chocolate sat untouched in front of her. It seemed unfair that she had to be here. **

"She wouldn't want to miss it." Hestia said, knowing what it was like. Sometimes when you're grieving, you don't want to seem weak so you act like everything's normal.

**I couldn't believe Clarisse and Michael standing over her, arguing about something as stupid as loot, when she'd just lost Beckendorf. **

"Who knew a son of my brother's could be sentimental?" Hades looked up from the book.

** "STOP IT!" I yelled. "What are you guys doing?" Clarisse glowered at me. "Tell Michael not to be a selfish jerk." **

** "Oh, that's perfect, coming from you," Michael said. **

** "The only reason I'm here is to support Silena!" Clarisse shouted. "Otherwise I'd be back in my cabin." **

"How are supporting her by yelling about something trivial?" Hera snorted.

** "What are you talking about?" I demanded. **

** Pollux cleared his throat. "Clarisse has refused to speak to any of us, until her, um, issue is resolved. She hasn't spoken for three days." **

** "It's been wonderful," Travis Stoll said wistfully. **

"And scary." Annabeth added.

** "What issue?" I asked. **

** Clarisse turned to Chiron. "You're in charge, right? Does my cabin get what we want or not?" **

** Chiron shuffled his hooves. "My dear, as I've already explained, Michael is correct. Apollo's cabin has the best claim. Besides, we have more important matters-" **

** "Sure," Clarisse snapped. "Always more important matters than what Ares needs. We're just supposed to show up and light when you need us, and not complain!" **

"It's true." Ares pointed out.

"But the timing is absolutely terrible." Artemis added.

** "That would be nice," Connor Stoll muttered. **

** Clarisse gripped her knife. "Maybe I should ask Mr. D-" **

** "As you know," Chiron interrupted, his tone slightly angry now, "our director, Dionysus, is busy with the war. He can't be bothered with this." **

"They got Chiron angry? I'd take a break with this if I was them." Athena commented.

** "I see," Clarisse said. "And the senior counsellors? Are **_**any**_** of you going to side with me?" **

** Nobody was smiling now. None of them met Clarisse's eyes. **

** "Fine." Clarisse turned to Silena. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get into this when you've just lost . . . Anyway, I apologize. To **_**you.**_** Nobody else." **

** Silena didn't seem to register her words. **

** Clarisse threw her knife on the Ping-Pong table. "All of you can fight this war without Ares. Until I get satisfaction, no one in my cabin is lifting a finger to help. Have fun dying."**

"Bloody hell." Ares exclaimed. "It's just some minor issue! Fight in the freaking war!" Ares began to yell.

**The counsellors were all too stunned to say anything as Clarisse stormed out of the room. **

** Finally Michael Yew said, "Good riddance." **

"Please tell me your son is joking, Apollo." Demeter demanded.

"He isn't." Apollo paled.

** "Are you kidding?" Katie Gardner protested. "This is a disaster!" **

** "She can't be serious," Travis said. "Can she?" **

**Chiron sighed. "Her pride has been wounded. She'll calm down eventually." But he didn't sound convinced. **

"Grudges held by children of Ares are almost as bad as grudges held by Hades's kids.

** I wanted to ask what the heck Clarisse was so mad about, but I looked at Annabeth and she mouthed the words **_**I'll tell you later. **_

** "Now," Chiron continued, "if you please, counsellors. Percy has brought something I think you should hear. Percy- the Great Prophecy." **

** Annabeth handed me the parchment. It felt dry and old, and my fingers fumbled with the string.**

"Are you nervous?"

"Who wouldn't be?" Percy raised his eyebrows, daring Apollo to reply. Apollo didn't.

**I uncurled the paper, trying not to rip it, and began to read:**

_**"A half-blood of the eldest dogs . . ." **_

"Beg your pardon?" Zeus raised his eyebrows.

"Dyslexia." Percy explained.

** "Er, Percy?" Annabeth interrupted. "That's **_**gods. **_** Not **_**dogs**_**." **

** "Oh, right," I said. Being dyslexic is one mark of a demigod, but sometimes I really hate it. The more nervous I am, the worse my reading gets. **_**"A half~blood of the eldest gods . . . shall reach sixteen against all odds . . ."**_

** I hesitated, staring at the next lines. A cold feeling started in my fingers as if the paper was freezing. **

_**"And see the world in endless sleep, **_

_**The hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap." **_

** Suddenly Riptide seemed heavier in my pocket. A cursed blade? **

"I'm sure it won't be Riptide, right?" Poseidon paled slightly.

** Chiron once told me Riptide had brought many people sorrow. Was it possible my own sword could get me killed? And how could the world fall into endless sleep, unless that meant death? **

"Never underestimate magic, Perseus." Zeus told the saviour.

** "Percy," Chiron urged. "Read the rest." My mouth felt like it was full of sand, but I spoke the last two lines. **

_**"A single choice shall. . . shall end his days. Olympus to per**_**- **_**pursue**_**-" **

_**"Preserve," **_** Annabeth said gently. "It means **_**to save. **_**" **

** "I know what it means," I grumbled. **_**"Olympus to preserve or raze." **_

** The room was silent. Finally Connor Stoll said, "Raise is good, isn't it?" **

"He's saying it R-A-I-S-E not R-A-Z-E." Hades pointed out.

** "Not **_**raise, **_**"Silena said. Her voice was hollow, but I was startled to hear her speak at all. "R-a-z-e means **_**destroy. **_**" **

** "Obliterate," Annabeth said. "Annihilate. Turn to rubble." **

** "Got it." My heart felt like lead. "Thanks." **

"Bet you're glad you didn't know about the prophecy until now." Demeter's eyes widened.

**Everybody was looking at me-with concern, or pity, or maybe a little fear. **

"Why would they be scared?" Grover asked.

"I don't know." Percy shrugged.

** Chiron closed his eyes as if he were saying a prayer. In horse form, his head almost brushed the lights in the rec room. "You see now, Percy, why we thought it best not to tell you the whole prophecy. You've had enough on your shoulders-" **

** "Without realizing I was going to die in the end anyway?" I said. "Yeah, I get it." **

** Chiron gazed at me sadly. The guy was three thousand years old. He'd seen hundreds of heroes die. He might not like it, but he was used to it. He probably knew better than to try to reassure me. **

** "Percy," Annabeth said. "You know prophecies always have double meanings. It might not literally mean you die." **

** "Sure," I said. **_**"A single choice shall end his days. **_** That has tons of meanings, right?" **

"Was that sarcasm?" Athena asked.

"I think so."

"Good."

** "Maybe we can stop it," Jake Mason offered. **_**"The hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap. **_** Maybe we could find this cursed blade and destroy it. Sounds like Kronos's scythe, right?" **

"Nice try, but you can't stop a prophecy." Apollo said sadly.

** I hadn't thought about that, but it didn't matter if the cursed blade was Riptide or Kronos's scythe. Either way, I doubted we could stop the prophecy. A blade was supposed to reap my soul. As a general rule, I preferred not to have my soul reaped. **

** "Perhaps we should let Percy think about these lines," Chiron said. "He needs time-" **

** "No." I folded up the prophecy and shoved it into my pocket. I felt defiant and angry, though I wasn't sure who I was angry with. "I don't need time. If I die, I die. I can't worry about that, right?"**

Poseidon sat back, impressed with his son's attitude towards his death.

**Annabeth's hands were shaking a little. She wouldn't meet my eyes. **

** "Let's move on," I said. "We've got other problems. We've got a spy." **

** Michael Yew scowled. "A spy?" **

** I told them what had happened on the **_**Princess Andromeda**_**-how Kronos had known we were coming, how he'd shown me the silver scythe pendant he'd used to communicate with someone at camp. Silena started to cry again, and Annabeth put an arm around her shoulders. **

Annabeth bit her lip. She couldn't imagine how guilty Silena must've felt when she found out Beckendorf died because of her. She

** "Well," Connor Stoll said uncomfortably, "we've suspected there might a spy for years, right? Somebody kept passing information to Luke-like the location of the Golden Fleece a couple of years ago. It must be somebody who knew him well." Maybe subconsciously, he glanced at Annabeth. She'd known Luke better than anyone, of course, but Connor looked away quickly. **

** "Um, I mean, it could be anybody." **

** "Yes." Katie Gardner frowned at the Stoll brothers. She'd disliked them ever since they'd decorated the grass roof of the Demeter cabin with chocolate Easter bunnies. "Like one of Luke's siblings." **

"Thanks for the defence, Kat." Annabeth smiled.

** Travis and Connor both started arguing with her. **

** "Stop!" Silena banged the table so hard her hot chocolate spilled. "Charlie's dead and . . . and you're all arguing like little kids!" She put her head down and began to sob. **

"Bit of a cry baby." Ares mocked.

"Her boyfriend just died." Artemis snapped.

** Hot chocolate trickled off the Ping-Pong table. Everybody looked ashamed. **

"As they should be." Hera agreed.

** "She's right," Pollux said at last. "Accusing each other doesn't help. We need to keep our eyes open for a silver necklace with a scythe charm. If Kronos had one, the spy probably does too." Michael Yew grunted. "We need to find this spy before we plan our next operation. Blowing up the **_**Princess Andromeda**_** won't stop Kronos forever." **

** "No indeed," Chiron said. "In fact his next assault is already on the way." **

** I scowled. "You mean the 'bigger threat' Poseidon mentioned?" He and Annabeth looked at each other like, **_**It's time. **_** Did I mention I hate it when they do that? **

"Once or twice." Triton shrugged.

** "Percy," Chiron said, "we didn't want to tell you until you returned to camp. You needed a break with your . . . mortal friends."**

"Awkward."

**Annabeth blushed. It dawned on me that she knew I'd been hanging out with Rachel, and I felt guilty. Then I felt angry that I felt guilty. I was allowed to have friends outside camp, right? It wasn't like . . . **

"You two were dating?" Aphrodite supplied suggestively.

** "Tell me what's happened," I said. **

** Chiron picked up a bronze goblet from the snack table. He tossed water onto the hot plate where we usually melted nacho cheese. Steam billowed up, making a rainbow in the fluorescent lights. Chiron fished a golden drachma out of his pouch, tossed it through the mist, and muttered, "O Iris, Goddess of the Rainbow, show us the threat." **

"That's ominous."

** The mist shimmered. I saw the familiar image of a smouldering volcano-Mount St. Helens. As I watched, the side of the mountain exploded. Fire, ash, and lava rolled out. A newscaster's voice was saying **_**" **_**- **_**even larger than last year's eruption, and geologists warn that the mountain may not be done." **_

"So, you awoke a monster? Thanks, Percy." Ares told the saviour snarkily.

** I knew all about last year's eruption. I'd caused it. But this explosion was much worse. The mountain tore itself apart, collapsing inward, and an enormous form rose out of the smoke and lava like it was emerging from a manhole. I hoped the Mist would keep the humans from seeing it clearly, because what I saw would've caused panic and riots across the entire United States. The giant was bigger than anything I'd ever encountered. Even my demigod eyes couldn't make out its exact form through the ash and fire, but it was vaguely humanoid and so huge it could've used the Chrysler Building as a baseball bat. The mountain shook with a horrible rumbling, as if the monster were laughing. **

"Holy Zeus."

"Bloody underworld."

"Good Pan."

"Freaking Poseidon."

"Could you all stop it with the Big Three and Pan curses?" Zeus complained.

"Sure." Thalia shrugged.

** "It's him," I said. "Typhon." **

** I was seriously hoping Chiron would say something good, like **_**No, that's our huge friend Leroy! He's going to help us! **_

"We wish." Poseidon snorted.

**But no such luck. He simply nodded. "The most horrible monster of all, the biggest single threat the gods ever faced. He has been freed from under the mountain at last. But this scene is from two days ago. **_**Here**_** is what is happening today." **

"Oh fudge bunnies."

** Chiron waved his hand and the image changed. I saw a bank of storm clouds rolling across the Midwest plains. Lightning flickered. Lines of tornadoes destroyed everything in their path-ripping up houses and trailers, tossing cars around like Matchbox toys. **

"And it gets worse..." Nico trailed off.

_**"Monumental floods," **_**an announcer was saying. **_**"Five states declared disaster areas as the freak storm system sweeps east, continuing its path of destruction." **_

"How did Percy not know about all of this?"

Percy shrugged.

**The cameras zoomed in on a column of storm bearing down on some Midwest city. I couldn't tell which one. Inside the storm I could see the giant-just small glimpses of his true form: a smoky arm, a dark clawed hand the size of a city block. His angry roar rolled across the plains like a nuclear blast. Other smaller forms darted through the clouds, circling the monster. I saw flashes of light, and I realized the giant was trying to swat them. I squinted and thought I saw a golden chariot flying into the blackness. Then some kind of huge bird-a monstrous owl-dived in to attack the giant. **

"That's me." Athena noted.

** "Are those . . . the gods?" I said. **

** "Yes, Percy," Chiron said. "They have been fighting him for days now, trying to slow him down. But Typhon is marching forward- toward New York. Toward Olympus." **

"How much longer do we have?" Zeus asked the teens.

"It'll say later." Percy assured him.

** I let that sink in. "How long until he gets here?" **

** "Unless the gods can stop him? Perhaps five days. Most of the Olympians are there . . . except your father, who has a war of his own to fight." **

Percy nodded to Zeus.

** "But then who's guarding Olympus?" **

** Connor Stoll shook his head. "If Typhon gets to New York, it won't matter who's guarding Olympus." **

"He has a point."

** I thought about Kronos's words on the ship: **_**I would love to see the terror in your eyes when you realize how I will destroy Olympus.**_** Was this what he was talking about: an attack by Typhon? It was sure terrifying enough. But Kronos was always fooling us, misdirecting our attention. This seemed too obvious for him.**

Athena's eyebrows raised. He was right, as relcuctant for her to admit it. But Chiron seemed correct as well.

**And in my dream, the golden Titan had talked about several more challenges to come, as if Typhon were only the first. **

** "It's a trick," I said. "We have to warn the gods. Something else is going to happen." **

** Chiron looked at me gravely. "Something worse than Typhon? I hope not." **

"Same here. But you need to be prepared anyway." Thalia warned the gods.

** "We have to defend Olympus," I insisted. "Kronos has another attack planned." **

** "He did," Travis Stoll reminded me. "But you sunk his ship." Everyone was looking at me. They wanted some good news. They wanted to believe that at least I'd given them a little bit of hope. I glanced at Annabeth. I could tell we were thinking the same thing: What if the **_**Princess Andromeda**_** was a ploy? What if Kronos **_**let**_** us blow up that ship so we'd lower our guard? **

"Don't over guess those things. I don't think Kronos would consider that." Zeus shook his head.

"Brother, Kronos has been trapped for eons. I'm sure he has this all mapped out." Hades disagreed.

** But I wasn't going to say that in front of Silena. Her boyfriend had sacrificed himself for that mission. **

"Us Poseidon kids may be tactless but when aren't that thick." Triton nodded.

** "Maybe you're right," I said, though I didn't believe it. I tried to imagine how things could get much worse. The gods were in the Midwest fighting a huge monster that had almost defeated them once before. Poseidon was under siege and losing a war against the sea Titan Oceanus. Kronos was still out there somewhere. Olympus was virtually undefended. The demigods of Camp HalfBlood were on our own with a spy in our midst. Oh, and according to the ancient prophecy, I was going to die when I turned sixteen-which happened to be in five days, the exact same time Typhon was supposed to hit New York. Almost forgot that. **

"We're doomed." Zeus cried.

"I would say you're being melodramatic as per usual, Brother. But you're right." Poseidon sighed in defeat.

"How do we win this?" Ares asked Percy, who shrugged. He can't really comprehend how they won either.

** "Well," Chiron said, "I think that's enough for one night." He waved his hand and the steam dissipated. The stormy battle of Typhon and the gods disappeared. **

** "That's an understatement," I muttered. **

** And the war council adjourned. **

"These chapters are so long!" Hades complained.

"Yeah, tell me about it." Percy muttered.

* * *

_Hey FanFictioners,_

_So what did ya think? Never forget to review! Not being pushy or anything..._

_Anyway, I'm going to be longer when writing the chapters because they're so long, this was 13 pages in word! I'm loving these little snippets I'm throwing in at the beginning, I think it adds depth to these normally dislike characters. _

_All of this stuff will play a part later. So stay tuned!_

_I'm working on the livejournal account so expect that to be fully done in two weeks because I am extremely intolerant._

_See you in two days,_

_Pattern of Night xoxo_

_P.S. Review, alert, favorite and recommend to your friends. :D_


	5. C4: We Burn A Metal Shroud

**CHAPTER FOUR**

**WE BURN A METAL**** SHROUD**

"Let's get this over with." Nico muttered. "I'll read." He announced clearly, so everyone could hear him.

"Chapter four, We Burn A Metal Shroud."

** I dreamed Rachel Elizabeth Dare was throwing darts at my picture. **

"Charming." Hera said dryly, her eyebrows raised.

** She was standing in her room . . . Okay, back up. I have to explain that Rachel doesn't have a room.**

"I knew she was homeless!" Apollo exclaimed.

"She isn't." Percy frowned.

"But you said she doesn't have a room."

"Just let Nico read the rest and you'll see what I mean." Percy told Apollo.

**She has the top floor of her family's mansion, which is a renovated brownstone in Brooklyn. Her "room" is a huge loft with industrial lighting and floor-to-ceiling windows. **

"Oh, that makes sense." Apollo nodded.

**It's about twice as big as my mom's apartment. **

"Is your mom's place small?" Aphrodite asked Percy.

"It's an average size, why?"

"Zeus! That's big." Aphrodite murmured, so quietly no one could hear her. "Huh? Oh, nothing." Aphrodite raised her voice to a normal volume.

** Some alt rock was blaring from her paint-covered Bose docking system. As far as I could tell, Rachel's only rule about music was that no two songs on her iPod could sound the same, and they all had to be strange. **

"I love music that sounds different." Apollo smiled.

"Apollo, you're the God of music, you love any kind of musical related thing." Artemis rolled her eyes.

** She wore a kimono, and her hair was frizzy, like she'd been sleeping. Her bed was messed up. Sheets hung over a bunch of artist's easels. Dirty clothes and old energy bar wrappers were strewn around the floor, **

Hestia's nose scrunched up.

**but when you've got a room that big, the mess doesn't look so bad. Out the windows you could see the entire night time skyline of Manhattan. **

"That sounds so pretty." Demeter smiled, although she wasn't a fan of big cities, she did appreciate their unnatural beauty.

** The picture she was attacking was a painting of me standing over the giant Antaeus. **

"Quick growth spurt, Percy." Hermes commented, his eyebrows raised.

**Rachel had painted it a couple of months ago. My expression in the picture was fierce-disturbing, even-so it was hard to tell if I was the good guy or the bad guy, but Rachel said I'd looked just like that after the battle. **

_**"Demigods," **_**Rachel muttered as she threw another dart at the canvas. "And their **_**stupid**_** quests." **

"Don't worry, Rachel dear, quests aren't the only thing that's stupid about demigods." Persephone snapped bitterly, appearing out of nowhere.

"Persephone, please, uh, sit." Hades created a throne next to him for his wife to sit down on.

"Perseus, Annabeth, Grover, Thalia." The goddess of the Underworld curtly nodded to the demigods. Hades cleared his throat, "Darling, this is my son, Nico."

"I very well know who this is, Hades. You know that." Persephone bit out. She scowled at Nico and turned on her heel, making her way to the throne. "There's no point in explaining on what's been happening, I've read up to this point on my own."

"I'll just continue reading then." Nico muttered.

** Most of the darts bounced off, but a few stuck. One hung off my chin like a goatee. **

** Someone pounded on her bedroom door. **

** "Rachel!" a man shouted. "What in the world are you doing? Turn off that-" **

** Rachel scooped up her remote control and shut off the music. **

** "Come in!" **

** Her dad walked in, scowling and blinking from the light. He had rust-colored hair a little darker than Rachel's. It was smushed on one side like he'd lost a fight with his pillow. **

"Interesting use of vocab there, Perce. Smushed? Seriously?" Triton commented. Percy shrugged.

"You get used to it." Grover told Triton.

**His blue silk pajamas had "WD" monogrammed on the pocket. Seriously, who has monogrammed pajamas? **

"W. Dare does." Apollo nodded.

** "What is going on?" he demanded. "It's three in the morning." **

** "Couldn't sleep," Rachel said. **

** On the painting, a dart fell off my face. Rachel hid the rest behind her back, but Mr. Dare noticed. **

** "So . . . I take it your friend isn't coming to St. Thomas?" That's what Mr. Dare called me. Never **_**Percy. **_** Just **_**your friend. **_** Or **_**young man**_** if he was talking to me, which he rarely did. **

"That's nice." Thalia snorted.

"Do you always interrupt? I'm trying to listen here." Persephone said shortly.

"Yeah, we do." Apollo answered Persephone's question casually.

**Rachel knit her eyebrows. "I don't know." **

** "We leave in the morning," her dad said. "If he hasn't made up his mind yet-" **

** "He's probably not coming," Rachel said miserably. "Happy?" Mr. Dare put his hands behind his back. He paced the room with a stern expression.**

"Your daughter is miserable, have the decency to care." Hera scolded Mr. Dare. Persephone gave Hera a confused glance which the goddess promptly ignored.

**I imagined he did that in the boardroom of his land development company and made his employees nervous. **

** "Are you still having bad dreams?" he asked. "Headaches?" Rachel threw her darts on the floor. "I should never have told you about that." **

** "I'm your father," he said. "I'm worried about you." **

** "Worried about the family's reputation," Rachel muttered. Her father didn't react-maybe because he'd heard that comment before, or maybe because it was true. **

"It's a bit of both." Annabeth explained. "Rachel and I can have civil conversations you know." She elaborated when people began to give her odd looks.

** "We could call Dr. Arkwright," he suggested. "He helped you get through the death of your hamster." **

"You need a therapist to get through the death of a hamster?" Hades asked rhetorically.

** "I was six then," she said. "And no, Dad, I don't need a therapist. I just . . ." She shook her head helplessly. Her father stopped in front of the windows. He gazed at the New York skyline as if he owned it- which wasn't true. He only owned part of it. **

"A part of New York is still heaps." Aphrodite commented.

** "It will be good for you to get away," he decided. "You've had some unhealthy influences." **

** "I'm not going to Clarion Ladies Academy," Rachel said. "And my friends are none of your business." **

** Mr. Dare smiled, but it wasn't a warm smile. It was more like, **_**Someday you'll realize how silly you sound. **_

"Children." Ares shook his head, acting like Mr. Dare.

** "Try to get some sleep," he urged. "We'll be at the beach by tomorrow night. It will be fun." **

** "Fun," Rachel repeated. "Lots of fun." **

"As if. With that kind of father, only in your dreams." Nico looked up from the book.

**Her father exited the room. He left the door open behind him. Rachel stared at the portrait of me. Then she walked to the easel next to it, which was covered in a sheet. **

** "I hope they're dreams," she said. **

** She uncovered the easel. On it was a hastily sketched charcoal, but Rachel was a good artist. The picture was definitely Luke as a young boy. **

Hermes sat up. Maybe Rachel had met Luke?

**He was about nine years old, with a wide grin and no scar on his face. I had no idea how Rachel could've known what he looked like back then, but the portrait was so good I had a feeling she wasn't guessing.**

Apollo frowned. Dreams, headaches, the paintings. It all meant something, he just didn't know what.

**From what I knew about Luke's life (which wasn't much), the picture showed him just before he'd found out he was a half-blood and had run away from home. **

Thalia smiled sadly, remembering the journey to Camp Half-Blood.

** Rachel stared at the portrait. Then she uncovered the next easel. This picture was even more disturbing. It showed the Empire State Building with lightning all around it. In the distance a dark storm was brewing, with a huge hand coming out of the clouds. At the base of the building a crowd had gathered . . . but it wasn't a normal crowd of tourists and pedestrians. I saw spears, javelins, and banners- the trappings of an army. **

"The battle." Zeus clenched his jaw. It was coming and it was going to be huge. The final decider between the on-going war between the Gods and the Titans.

** "Percy," Rachel muttered, as if she knew I was listening, "what is going on?" **

** The dream faded, and the last thing I remember was wishing I could answer her question. **

"We all want to answer it." Hestia said.

** The next morning, I wanted to call her, but there were no phones at camp. Dionysus and Chiron didn't need a landline. They just called Olympus with an Iris-message whenever they needed something. And when demigods use cell phones, the signals agitate every monster within a hundred miles. It's like sending up a flare: **_**Here I am! Please rearrange my face!**_

"I doubt your face could get any worse." Ares said rudely.

**Even within the safe borders of camp, that's not the kind of advertising we wanted to do. Most demigods (except for Annabeth and a few others) don't even own cell phones. And I definitely couldn't tell Annabeth, "Hey, let me borrow your phone so I can call Rachel!" **

The room laughed but Persephone remained like a statue. Annabeth found herself chuckling along, she would've cracked it at Percy if he had asked her that.

**To make the call, I would've had to leave camp and walk several miles to the nearest convenience store. Even if Chiron let me go, by the time I got there, Rachel would've been on the plane to St. Thomas. **

** I ate a depressing breakfast by myself at the Poseidon table. I kept staring at the fissure in the marble floor where two years ago Nico had banished a bunch of bloodthirsty skeletons to the Underworld.**

"That's a great thought to have before you start to eat breakfast." Poseidon chuckled.

**The memory didn't exactly improve my appetite. After breakfast, Annabeth and I walked down to inspect the cabins. Actually, it was Annabeth's turn for inspection. My morning chore was to sort through reports for Chiron. But since we both hated our jobs, we decided to do them together so it wouldn't be so heinous. **

"That's a big word." Zeus raised his eyebrows at Percy, who was known for his laziness in the vocabulary department.

** We started at the Poseidon cabin, which was basically just me. I'd made my bunk bed that morning (well, sort of) and straightened the Minotaur horn on the wall, so I gave myself a four out of five. **

"Obviously well deserved." Annabeth rolled her eyes sarcastically.

**Annabeth made a face. "You're being generous." She used the end of her pencil to pick up an old pair of running shorts. I snatched them away. "Hey, give me a break. I don't have Tyson cleaning up after me this summer." **

** "Three out of five," Annabeth said. **

"Could have been worse." Percy shrugged.

**I knew better than to argue, so we moved along. **

** I tried to skim through Chiron's stack of reports as we walked. There were messages from demigods, nature spirits, and satyrs all around the country, writing about the latest monster activity. They were pretty depressing, and my ADHD brain did **_**not**_** like concentrating on depressing stuff. **

"Please, your brain doesn't like concentrating in general." Thalia scoffed.

** Little battles were raging everywhere. Camp recruitment was down to zero. Satyrs were having trouble finding new demigods and bringing them to Half-Blood Hill because so many monsters were roaming the country. Our friend Thalia, who led the Hunters of Artemis, hadn't been heard from in months, and if Artemis knew what had happened to them, she wasn't sharing information.**

"I'd tell you if I knew, but only in those circumstances." Artemis frowned.

**We visited the Aphrodite cabin, which of course got a five out of five. The beds were perfectly made. The clothes in everyone's footlockers were color coordinated. Fresh flowers bloomed on the windowsills. I wanted to dock a point because the whole place reeked of designer perfume, but Annabeth ignored me. **

"There's nothing wrong with a little perfume now and again." Aphrodite defended her cabin.

** "Great job as usual, Silena," Annabeth said. **

** Silena nodded listlessly. The wall behind her bed was decorated with pictures of Beckendorf. She sat on her bunk with a box of chocolates on her lap, and I remembered that her dad owned a chocolate store in the Village, which was how he'd caught the attention of Aphrodite. **

"The first and last time she wasn't watching her figure." Apollo muttered to Hermes, who snickered in response.

** "You want a bonbon?" Silena asked. "My dad sent them. He thought- he thought they might cheer me up." **

Persephone finally showed some reaction to the book by frowning sadly. That poor girl, she thought.

** "Are they any good?" I asked. **

** She shook her head. "They taste like cardboard." I didn't have anything against cardboard, so I tried one. Annabeth passed. We promised to see Silena later and kept going. As we crossed the commons area, a fight broke out between the Ares and Apollo cabins. **

"Not again." Hestia complained.

**Some Apollo campers armed with firebombs flew over the Ares cabin in a chariot pulled by two pegasi. I'd never seen the chariot before, but it looked like a pretty sweet ride. Soon, the roof of the Ares cabin was burning, and naiads from the canoe lake rushed over to blow water on it. **

** Then the Ares campers called down a curse, and all the Apollo kids' arrows turned to rubber. The Apollo kids kept shooting at the Ares kids, but the arrows bounced off. **

"Seriously?" Hera said. "Demigods." She muttered, her hand holding her forehead as if she was nursing a headache.

** Two archers ran by, chased by an angry Ares kid who was yelling in poetry: "Curse me, eh? I'll make you pay! / I don't want to rhyme all day!" **

Apollo laughed at Ares.

"Hey, remember that time you made a move on that girl and she turned out to be a boy and you promised me not to tell anyone? As soon as this reading thing is over I'm going to tell _everyone._" Ares threatened in a successful attempt to shut Apollo up.

** Annabeth sighed. "Not that again. Last time Apollo cursed a cabin, it took a week for the rhyming couplets to wear off." I shuddered. Apollo was god of poetry as well as archery, and I'd heard him recite in person. I'd almost rather get shot by an arrow. **

"Hey! I am awesome at everything!" Apollo cried, his mouth open with shock.

"Yeah, why is my brother god of poetry of all things?" Artemis asked Zeus.

"No one else wanted to have the position." Athena answered for Zeus.

** "What are they fighting about anyway?" I asked. Annabeth ignored me while she scribbled on her inspection scroll, giving both cabins a one out of five. **

"They aren't that bad..." Aphrodite trailed off, finding herself unable to finish the sentence.

** I found myself staring at her, which was stupid since I'd seen her a billion times. **

"Yes, it is stupid." Athena agreed dryly.

**She and I were about the same height this summer, which was a relief. Still, she seemed so much more mature. It was kind of intimidating. I mean, sure, she'd always been cute, but she was starting to be seriously beautiful.**

Poseidon chuckled at Athena's blanched expression as she was finally processing Percy's reciprocated feelings for Annabeth.

"If Percabeth got married, you two would be the awkwardest in-laws ever!" Aphrodite commented tactlessly. Athena turned red with anger and Poseidon stopped chuckling, they looked at each other with disdain and looked at anything but each other.

"I said something stupid again, didn't I?" Aphrodite realised.

"Yeah, you did." Artemis replied.

** Finally she said, "That flying chariot." **

** "What?" **

"Did you just get caught?" Persephone asked, wanting to say something.

"Kinda, I knew he was looking, I think." Annabeth frowned. She couldn't really remember that moment.

** "You asked what they were fighting about." **

** "Oh. Oh, right." **

"Bit slow there, Perce." Grover rolled his eyes.

** "They captured it in a raid in Philadelphia last week. Some of Luke's demigods were there with that flying chariot. The Apollo cabin seized it during the battle, but the Ares cabin led the raid. So they've been fighting about who gets it ever since." We ducked as Michael Yew's chariot dive-bombed an Ares camper. The Ares camper tried to stab him and cuss him out in rhyming couplets. He was pretty creative about rhyming those cuss words. **

"Your children have such an elegant vocabulary." Hera told her son disdainfully.

** "We're fighting for our lives," I said, "and they're bickering about some stupid chariot." **

** "They'll get over it," Annabeth said. "Clarisse will come to her senses." **

"Thankfully." Annabeth murmured to Percy. "We need to talk after this chapter, all of us." She nodded to Nico, Grover and Thalia.

** I wasn't so sure. That didn't sound like the Clarisse I knew. I scanned more reports and we inspected a few more cabins. Demeter got a four. Hephaestus got a three and probably should've gotten lower, but with Beckendorf being gone and all, we cut them some slack. **

"That's sweet." Hestia smiled kindly.

**Hermes got a two, which was no surprise.**

"Ha! Your kids are lazy." Apollo snickered.

**All campers who didn't know their godly parentage were shoved into the Hermes cabin, and since the gods were kind of forgetful, that cabin was always overcrowded. **

"Forgetfulis kinda sugar-coating it, Percy." Thalia told her cousin, causing the gods to feel more awkward than usual.

"Talking about my cabin, claim your kids already. My children deserve some privacy." Hermes scolded the gods.

** Finally we got to Athena's cabin, which was orderly and clean as usual. Books were straightened on the shelves. The armor was polished. Battle maps and blueprints decorated the walls. Only Annabeth's bunk was messy. It was covered in papers, and her silver laptop was still running. **

"Shock horror." Nico mocked Annabeth, looking up from the book.

"Shut it, Di Angelo." She muttered in reply.

_**"Vlacas," **_** Annabeth muttered, which was basically calling herself an idiot in Greek. **

"I highly doubt Athena's daughter is a _Vlacas._" Hestia rolled her eyes.

** Her second-in-command, Malcolm, suppressed a smile. "Yeah, um . . . we cleaned everything else. Didn't know if it was safe to move your notes." **

"It never is." Grover said fondly.

** That was probably smart. Annabeth had a bronze knife that she reserved just for monsters and people who messed with her stuff. **

"It'll ruin everything." Annabeth defended as people began to laugh at the purpose of her weapon.

**Malcolm grinned at me. "We'll wait outside while you finish inspection." The Athena campers filed out the door while Annabeth cleaned up her bunk. **

** I shuffled uneasily and pretended to go through some more reports. Technically, even on inspection, it was against camp rules for two campers to be . . . like, **_**alone**_** in a cabin.**

"I am I the only one second thinking this whole reading a book based around a pubescent teenage boy who is in love with his best friend?" Persephone said, bored with the book.

**That rule had come up a lot when Silena and Beckendorf started dating. And I know some of you might be thinking, Aren't all demigods related on the godly side, and doesn't that make dating gross? But the thing is, the godly side of your family doesn't count, genetically speaking, since gods don't have DNA.**

"DNA is for humans."

"We know that, Brother, the book just said that." Artemis rolled her eyes.

**A demigod would never think about dating someone who had the same godly parent.**

"Ew!" Grover squirmed.

**Like two kids from Athena cabin? No way. But a daughter of Aphrodite and a son of Hephaestus? They're not related. So it's no problem. **

** Anyway, for some strange reason I was thinking about this as I watched Annabeth straighten up.**

"For some strange reason." Poseidon quoted his son, scoffing at Percy's thoughts.

**She closed her laptop, which had been given to her as a gift from the inventor Daedalus last summer. I cleared my throat. "So . . . get any good info from that thing?" **

** "Too much," she said. "Daedalus had so many ideas, I could spend fifty years just trying to figure them all out." **

** "Yeah," I muttered. "That would be fun." She shuffled her papers-mostly drawings of buildings and a bunch of handwritten notes. I knew she wanted to be an architect someday, but I'd learned the hard way not to ask what she was working on. She'd start talking about angles and load-bearing joints until my eyes glazed over. **

"It's nice you try. Architecture isn't everyone's forte." Demeter reasoned.

** "You know . . ." She brushed her hair behind her ear, like she does when she's nervous. **

"You're gonna make a move, aren't you?" Athena asked her daughter. Annabeth nodded, no point prolonging the truth, which is why she needed to talk to everyone.

**"This whole thing with Beckendorf and Silena. It kind of makes you think. About . . . what's important. About losing people who are important." **

"Don't do something stupid. Don't do something stupid. Don't do something stupid." Triton chanted.

** I nodded. My brain started seizing on little random details, like the fact that she was still wearing those silver owl earrings from her dad, who was this brainiac military history professor in San Francisco. **

Athena raised her eyebrows at Percy.

** "Urn, yeah," I stammered. "Like . . . is everything cool with your family?" **

"Seriously?" Triton felt stunned. It was obvious Annabeth was hinting something there, how could Percy miss something that obvious?

** Okay, really stupid question, but hey, I was nervous. **

"Really stupid question doesn't begin to describe how idiotic that comment was." Thalia rolled her eyes at her cousin's lack of conversational ability.

** Annabeth looked disappointed, but she nodded. **

"Why would she be disappointed?" Persephone asked, she'd been chatting aimlessly at Hades, who was ignoring her so he could listen to the book.

"Why wouldn't she be disappointed?" Hermes replied.

** "My dad wanted to take me to Greece this summer," she said wistfully. "I've always wanted to see-" **

** "The Parthenon," I remembered. **

"You listen to the stuff Annabeth says?" Thalia leaned forwards, not believing it.  
"Well, yeah." Percy replied.

"Scratch that, you can listen to what people say in general." Nico added.

** She managed a smile. "Yeah." **

** "That's okay. There'll be other summers, right?"**

"Yet another example of how stupid you are." Thalia teased Percy.

**As soon as I said it, I realized it was a boneheaded comment. I was facing the **_**end of my days. **_** Within a week, Olympus might fall. If the Age of the Gods really did end, the world as we knew it would dissolve into chaos. Demigods would be hunted to extinction. There would be no more summers for us. **

"There wouldn't be a summer in general." Persephone said bitterly.

** Annabeth stared at her inspection scroll. "Three out five," she muttered, "for a sloppy head counsellor. Come on. Let's finish your reports and get back to Chiron." **

** On the way to the Big House, we read the last report, which was handwritten on a maple leaf from a satyr in Canada. If possible, the note made me feel even worse. **

** " 'Dear Grover,'" I read aloud. " 'Woods outside Toronto attacked by giant evil badger. Tried to do as you suggested and summon power of Pan. No effect. Many naiads' trees destroyed. Retreating to Ottawa. Please advise. Where are you? -Gleeson Hedge, protector.'" Annabeth grimaced. "You haven't heard **_**anything**_** from him? Even with your empathy link?" **

"Empathy link? What empathy link?" Poseidon questioned.

"Oh yeah, Grover and I have an empathy link." Percy replied lamely.

** I shook my head dejectedly. **

** Ever since last summer when the god Pan had died, our friend Grover had been drifting farther and farther away. The Council of Cloven Elders treated him like an outcast, but Grover still travelled all over the East Coast, trying to spread the word about Pan and convince nature spirits to protect their own little bits of the wild.**

"They should be doing that anyway." Demeter frowned. "But good on him, not caring what people think and doing what's best. It's admirable."

"It's really great what you're doing, Grover. Demeter's right; it _is_ admirable." Artemis agreed, whole-heartedly.

Grover flushed at the compliments from the goddesses.

**He'd only come back to camp a few times to see his girlfriend, Juniper. **

** Last I'd heard he was in Central Park organizing the dryads, but nobody had seen or heard from him in two months. We'd tried to send Iris-messages. They never got through. I had an empathy link with Grover, so I hoped I would know if anything bad happened to him. Grover had told me one time that if he died, the empathy link might kill me too.**

"That's great." Triton mused sarcastically.

**But I wasn't sure if that was still true or not. I wondered if he was still in Manhattan. Then I thought about my dream of Rachel's sketch-dark clouds closing on the city, an army gathered around the Empire State Building. **

** "Annabeth." I stopped her by the tetherball court. I knew I was asking for trouble, but I didn't know who else to trust.**

"Why are your thoughts sweeter than your words?" Annabeth whispered in Percy's ear.

"Because I'm a guy, we don't do sweet." Percy replied.

"Is that so? Remember Valentine's day?" She dared him.

"I'm a really bad version of a guy." He grumbled.

**Plus, I'd always depended on Annabeth for advice. "Listen, I had this dream about, um, Rachel . . ." **

"Awkward..."

** I told her the whole thing, even the weird picture of Luke as a child. For a while she didn't say anything. Then she rolled up her inspection scroll so tight she ripped it. **

"Someone's mad." Apollo called eerily.

**"What do you want me to say?" **

** "I'm not sure. You're the best strategist I know. If you were Kronos planning this war, what would you do next?" **

** "I'd use Typhon as a distraction. Then I'd hit Olympus directly, while the gods were in the West." **

"Which is what Kronos is going to do." Zeus sighed. It was impossible to avoid Typhon _and _guard Olympus.

** "Just like in Rachel's picture." **

** "Percy," she said, her voice tight, "Rachel is just a mortal." **

Aphrodite sat back. Annabeth was so annoyed because a) Rachel became part of the conversation again and b) Percy and Annabeth were the same, demigods, and that's something Rachel will never be, if it turns out Rachel is special Annabeth is scared Percy might chose Rachel.

** "But what if her dream is true? Those other Titans-they said Olympus would be destroyed in a matter of days. They said they had plenty of other challenges. And what's with that picture of Luke as a kid-" **

** "We'll just have to be ready." **

** "How?" I said.  
**"Don't press her." Thalia groaned.

**"Look at our camp. We can't even stop fighting each other. And I'm supposed to get my stupid soul reaped." She threw down her scroll.**

"And he pressed her."

**"I knew we shouldn't have shown you the prophecy." Her voice was angry and hurt. "All it did was scare you. You run away from things when you're scared." **

** I stared at her, completely stunned. **_**"Me? **_** Run away?" She got right in my face. "Yes, you. You're a coward, Percy Jackson!" **

"How so?" Athena tilted her head. She'd never been good with emotions.

"She's refering to their relationship." Poseidon told Athena.

** We were nose to nose. Her eyes were red, and I suddenly realized that when she called me a coward, maybe she wasn't talking about the prophecy. **

** "If you don't like our chances," she said, "maybe you should go on that vacation with Rachel." **

"Yet again, not about the war." Grover piped up.

** "Annabeth-" **

** "If you don't like our company." **

** "That's not fair!" **

** She pushed past me and stormed toward the strawberry fields. She hit the tetherball as she passed and sent it spinning angrily around the pole. **

** I'd like to say my day got better from there.**

"With your luck, I doubt it." Nico muttered.

**Of course it didn't. That afternoon we had an assembly at the campfire to burn Beckendorf's burial shroud and say our good-byes. Even the Ares and Apollo cabins called a temporary truce to attend. **

"At least they had the decency to do that."

** Beckendorf's shroud was made out of metal links, like chain mail. I didn't see how it would burn, but the Fates must've been helping out. The metal melted in the fire and turned to golden smoke, which rose into the sky. The campfire flames always reflected the campers' moods, and today they burned black. **

** I hoped Beckendorf's spirit would end up in Elysium. Maybe he'd even choose to be reborn and try for Elysium in three different lifetimes so he could reach the Isles of the Blest, which was like the Underworld's ultimate party headquarters. If anyone deserved it, Beckendorf did. **

"I'll make it happen." Hades nodded.

** Annabeth left without a word to me. Most of the other campers drifted off to their afternoon activities. I just stood there staring at the dying fire. Silena sat nearby crying, while Clarisse and her boyfriend, Chris Rodriguez, tried to comfort her. **

** Finally I got up the nerve to walk over. "Hey, Silena, I'm really sorry." **

** She sniffled. Clarisse glared at me, but she always glares at everyone.**

**Chris would barely look at me. He'd been one of Luke's men until Clarisse rescued him from the Labyrinth last summer, and I guess he still felt guilty about it. **

** I cleared my throat. "Silena, you know Beckendorf carried your picture. He looked at it right before we went into battle. You meant a lot to him. You made the last year the best of his life." Silena sobbed. **

"So you can say that to Silena but you can't tell Annabeth you like her?" Artemis asked. "Boys." She muttered.

** "Good work, Percy," Clarisse muttered. **

** "No, it's all right," Silena said. "Thank . . . thank you, Percy. I should go." **

** "You want company?" Clarisse asked. **

** Silena shook her head and ran off. **

** "She's stronger than she looks," Clarisse muttered, almost to herself. **

** "She'll survive." **

** "You could help with that," I suggested. "You could honor Beckendorf's memory by fighting with us." **

** Clarisse went for her knife, but it wasn't there anymore. She'd thrown it on the Ping-Pong table in the Big House. **

** "Not my problem," she growled. "My cabin doesn't get honor, I don't fight." **

** I noticed she wasn't speaking in rhymes. Maybe she hadn't been around when her cabin mates got cursed, or maybe she had a way of breaking the spell. With a chill, I wondered if Clarisse could be Kronos's spy at camp.**

"She may be mad but she isn't stupid enough to join Kronos." Demeter decided.

**Was that why she was keeping her cabin out of the fight? But as much as I disliked Clarisse, spying for the Titans didn't seem like her style. **

** "All right," I told her. "I didn't want to bring this up, but you owe me one. You'd be rotting in a Cyclops's cave in the Sea of Monsters if it wasn't for me." **

** She clenched her jaw. "Any other favour, Percy. Not this. The Ares cabin has been dissed too many times. And don't think I don't know what people say about me behind my back." **

** I wanted to say, **_**Well, it's true. **_** But I bit my tongue. **

"Good choice." Ares stared Percy up.

** "So, what-you're just going to let Kronos crush us?" I asked. **

** "If you want my help so bad, tell Apollo to give us the chariot." **

"It's a freaking chariot. Cut it up for all I care, just sort out your pathetic issues." Zeus shouted at Clarisse, who wasn't even there.

** "You're such a big baby." **

** She charged me, but Chris got between us. "Whoa, guys," he said. **

** "Clarisse, you know, maybe he's got a point." She sneered at him. "Not you too!" She trudged off with Chris at her heels. **

** "Hey, wait! I just meant-Clarisse, wait!" **

** I watched the last sparks from Beckendorf's fire curl into the afternoon sky. Then I headed toward the sword-fighting arena. I needed a break, and I wanted to see an old friend.**

"I'm an old friend now, am I?" Nico asked his cousin.

"You're just old in general, really." Percy replied.

"Whatcha guys talkin' about next chapter?" Hestia asked.

"Read to find out." Nico said ominously.

"But," Annabeth cut in. "Percy, Nico, Grover, Thalia and I are going to have a little chat first."

_Hey FanFictioners,_

_So Persephone is here but her heart isn't in it. The gang is gonna have a talk. And Nico and Percy are gonna talk in the book next chappie. Don't forget I have a livejournal account where this story is uploaded under the username neverbeentold. It's just this story that's being uploaded not A Twist To An Immortal Assembly because it's hard work and I'm lazy._

_Favourite, Alert, Review,_

_Pattern of Night xoxo_


	6. C5: Demigod Discussion

_Hey FanFictioners,_

_I'm back! And it isn't a reading chapter but I think you guys will like the __**twist **__at the end of the chapter. Nico is slightly OOC in this chappie but I think it's necessary for this particular chapter. I __will __begin to edit A Twist To An Immortal Assembly, it's been on my non-existent to-do-list for weeks. I'll see you very soon._

_Pattern of Night xoxo_

* * *

"What is it, Annie?" Thalia asked Annabeth once the five had reached outside the hall's walls.

"Don't call me Annie." Annabeth snapped at her friend. "We need to talk about how we're going to do this. How we're going react when we get up to the battle?" She started.

"I don't think we need to make a big deal out of this. Just be careful of your emotions when you get to the sad, happy or angry bits. Don't over-analyse stuff like with Silena and how you could've fixed it and everything will be fine." Nico rolled his eyes.

"I gotta say, the kid has a point." Percy agreed with his cousin. Nico scowled at Percy, he was not a child! He just celebrated his thirteenth birthday.

"Are we going to tell them about Percabeth?" Grover asked the group before the "meeting" disbanded.

"I think we shouldn't. Athena would crack it at us and you two would get teased endlessly." Thalia shuddered.

"Why would Athena get mad at you?" Percy frowned.

"Because we didn't tell her. She's like Annabeth, they're both control freaks. They hate not knowing stuff." Thalia said in an obvious manner.

"Okay then, why would you care if Annabeth and I got teased? And don't call Annabeth a control freak."

"Apollo and Hermes are already annoying me with their smart-ass comments, I don't want more of them. Don't act all boyfriend-ish on me, Percy Jackson, you can't deny that Annabeth is a control freak."

"I'm still here but thanks for the vouch of confidence, _sweetie_." Annabeth rolled her eyes, adding a sarcastic nickname at the end of the sentence.

"I think we should." Annabeth thought out loud. "I mean, Percy and I flirted heaps that year. They're gonna put two and two together and then Athena would be more mad at us for not telling her. Also the River Styx part is coming up soon." She explained.

"I agree with Annabeth. Nico, Grover, what do ya think?" Percy asked his friends.

"I say go with Thalia, she has a point. I revealed more than I had to with my dad and look what happened there." Nico pointed out.

"Grover?"

"Annabeth's idea. It's easier to say it now because they're gonna find out sooner or later. But it's up to you two."

"We'll tell them when we get back." Percy agreed. Annabeth pecked him on the lips, glad Percy was agreeing with her for once, causing him to smile like a doofus. But since he is a doofus, he was just smiling like he usually does.

"Is there anything else we need to talk about?" Nico asked, not really wanting to talk about anything else.

"Yeah, when are you and Hades gonna talk things out?" Grover asked.

"All children of Hades have the fatal flaw of holding grudges and we're just his kids." Nico replied with a fact.

"So?"

"So, Thalia, if I hold a grudge and he holds a grudge, neither of us are gonna apologise, not that I need to." Nico elaborated to his cousin as if he was talking to a child.

"I'm not stupid." Thalia snapped at the son of Hades.

"Could've fooled me." Nico scoffed.

"You-"

"Guys, stop the arguing and focus on the important stuff." Percy interrupted Thalia.

"There's no more important stuff to talk about, Annabeth and Percy will go tell everyone their dating, Nico won't talk to his dad because he's a stubborn asshole and we'll read the next chapter. Did I leave anything out?" Thalia went through everything.

"I'm not an asshole." Nico muttered.

"Could've fooled me."

"Hey!"

"So is that it?" Thalia asked again.

"That's pretty much it." Grover agreed. The five began to walk back to the hall.

"Before we go back in I have a question for Nico." Percy stopped halfway there.

"Well go on then, ask it!" Nico exclaimed.

"You were the happiest I've ever seen you when you were sitting next to Hades after the war finished. What happened since then and now? I mean, it's only been 10 months since the war ended."

Nico shuffled from foot to foot, not incredibly eager to share the information with his friends. Nico stood there, thinking hard about how he was going to phrase his reply because honestly he didn't even know what happened.

"I think," Nico started before pausing again. "Hades is a very temperamental and reclusive god."

"Reclusive? That's a big word." Thalia raised her eyebrows.

"Shut it, Thals. Back to what I was saying, it's hard to gain his approval and when you do it can easily slip away. I gained his approval but like I said children of Hades have the fatal flaw of holding grudges when we have no need to or when it'll just get in the way. Suppose that's the point of fatal flaws in the first place. So when I gained his approval it was for helping Percy out and trying to make an effort but we never talked about Bianca."

"And slowly the tension built up?" Annabeth finished for the son of Hades.

"Yeah, I tried talking to Hades but it was the wrong place and at the wrong time, I just didn't know that. He exploded at me and we haven't talked for months." Nico concluded.

"Why are you telling us this? Bit odd for you." Thalia frowned.

"Because Hades and I didn't talk about stuff and I don't want that to happen again." Nico shrugged, trying to make the heavy conversation more casual.

"At least you tried to make an effort with him, right?" Annabeth encouraged.

"I acted like a jerk-face though. Got jealous over his protection of Bianca, it was stupid and childish but Bianca's dead and I've accepted that. I'm just not sure if Hades will, he just needs to face the harsh truth."

"Maybe next time you talk to him don't act so... snobby?" Percy suggested.

"There will be no next time. Hades doesn't want to talk to me."

"How do you know that?"

"Because I just know it, alright!" Nico exclaimed, growing agitated with the conversation topic.

"You know nothing then." Percy nodded forward where Nico's father stood, having heard the whole conversation.

"We'll let you talk to him, 'kay?" Thalia smiled as they began to leave, giving father and son privacy so they could finally have a talk that might salvage the relationship they both want.

* * *

_Nico and Hades are finally gonna sort things out or are they? Comment on what you think is gonna or want to happen when they finally do talk. Next chapter will be the conversation, Percabeth reveal, the chapter AND a special guest. _


	7. C6: My Cookies Get Scorched

_Hey FanFictioners,_

_Here it is… chapter six…finally. It's probably my favourite chappie so far and I'm really pleased with it. I'd like to thank __**cantwaittilfall**__ for giving me the chapter so this chappie could be posted, thanks a bunch and you guys owe it to him for this one. Also, if anyone has chapter seven or even the whole book on their laptop, do you think you could PM me?_

_Hope it was worth the wait… Review, favourite or follow me if it was..._

_Lots of hugs,_

_Pattern of Night xoxo_

_21/10/12- Hey guys, I realise this chapter and the next one are in the wrong order, but continue to read this one anyway. The next one that I've already uploaded will be the one I missed out on. I managed to work it into the plot so any reviews I get saying it's wrong, thanks, but I know that :) enjoy this chappie and the next one and the rest after that - Pattern of Night xx_

* * *

"Thalia, stop that!" Annabeth berated Thalia, who had her ear pressed up against the door in her attempt to listen to Nico and Hades' conversation.

"Sheesh, someone needs to make out with their boyfriend." Thalia rolled her eyes.

"What boyfriend?" Athena approached them and looked at her daughter expectantly.

"There's no boyfriend." Annabeth lied.

"Annabeth, do stop acting like a child and tell me the truth. I know you have a boyfriend, who is it?" Athena scolded her daughter. The goddess turned to Percy and asked him distastefully, "It's not you, is it?"

"I don't know anything." Percy replied coolly.

"Yes, I know." Athena agreed primly.

"Well, if none of you are going to tell me… Grover!" Athena called out to the satyr who'd been trying to sneak away silently.

"Yes, Lady Athena?"

"Does my daughter have a boyfriend?" Athena questioned Grover.

"Well, uh… you see, I'm, uh, not at the, um, liberty to say, Lady Athena."

"Oh, so she does then?" Athena presumed. "Who is it?"

Percy sent a pleading look to his friend, who was beginning to sweat.

"He's some nobody, a, uh, mortal." Grover lied badly.

"So, Annabeth does like boys then." Athena noted.

"Mum!" Annabeth exclaimed.

"You never tell me anything, I'm your mother. I need to know these things. Not that I would mind, you can love you like except Apollo, Hermes and definitely not Poseidon. But other than that you can date who you like." Athena defended herself.

"Does that mean Annabeth can date whoever she likes?" Percy asked the goddess cautiously.

"Oh no." Athena frowned.

"What is it, Lady Athena?"

"Really, Annabeth? Him?" Athena pointed at Percy.

"What about my darling cousin?" Thalia chimed.

"Perseus is not a darling. You were wrong, Grover."

"Wrong about what?"

"Unfortunately Perseus _is _a somebody, just a stupid somebody. Annabeth, I think it's time you and I have a bit of a chat before I decide to rip the sea spawn's head off. I'll see the rest of you in the hall." And the goddess left the group with Annabeth hot on her heels.

"What just happened?" Percy asked Grover and Thalia once Athena was out of an earshot.

"Your girlfriend's mother just found out about your relationship and you got burned repeatedly." Thalia replied matter-of-factly.

"Why didn't Athena rip my head off and burn my remains?"

"I have no idea. But look on the bright side maybe she's just gonna cut your head off and hang it on her wall instead." Thalia smiled.

"That's the bright side?" Percy squawked.

"No," Percy relaxed considerably. "It's the closest thing to a bright side you've got." Percy gaped at his cousin as Thalia returned back to the door she was pressed up against before.

"It's quiet." Thalia frowned. "Percy, I think Nico's dead."

"Naw, Hades wouldn't do that. It'd mean that he'd have to put up with our little bundle of joy, happiness and rainbows more than he already does."

Thalia went back to listening to the door while Percy and Grover talked. Athena and Annabeth were going to be a little while longer so they could take a few more minutes relaxing or in Thalia's case, listening in on other people's private and personal conversations.

"Oof!" Thalia stumbled ungracefully.

"You alright?" Nico asked his cousin.

"Does it look like I'm alright, Nico? I'm on the ground!" Thalia snapped as she stood up. "Oh! Hades."

"Thalia, Perseus, Grover." Hades nodded to the trio.

"HADES!" A voice bounced around the room.

"It appears my youngest brother is in dire need of my assistance. Excuse me." Hades told them curtly before nodding at Nico and leaving.

"Seriously? You listened to our conversation?" Nico exploded once his father had left.

"Thalia thought Hades was gonna kill you." Grover told the demigod.

"Oh, that makes sense now." Nico commented sarcastically. "My father was going to kill me so you listened in on our conversation. Way to go, Thals."

"How did it go?" Percy asked.

"Okay." Nico shrugged.

"Okay? Does he hate you? Does he love you?" Thalia pushed him.

"To quote the god himself, we now have a mutual respect and understanding of and for one another."

"Dude, that's awesome!" Percy cheered.

"Yeah, _dude_." Thalia mocked.

"Shut it, Thalia."

"Like I was saying, that's awesome."

"I don't get why you're making such a big deal about all of this."

"Nico, mutual respect is Hades' version of saying I love you." Percy told Nico.

"Kelp Head has a point." Thalia agreed.

"Let's not make such a big deal out of this, alright? It's a very delicate relationship and I want to take it slow."

"Don't worry, Nicole. I'm sure Hades loves you; just give him one big slobbery kiss when your slow dancing together and you'll be fine." Thalia teased Nico.

"Guys, the gods want to start reading. Apollo's reciting some poem and it is _terrible_." Annabeth poked her head in through the door.

"Hey, uh, how did the talk go?" Percy asked Annabeth, running towards the door.

"Mum's nicer back in present day." She said simply.

"That bad?" Percy cringed. Annabeth nodded smiling.

"Everyone knows about us now, but on the bright side, no one's talking about it in case our paren. Poseidon seems to be taking it well. But Triton's been looking at me as if I'm a piece of art that needs to be analysed."

"No one's been talking about us, huh?"

"Yeah, it's really bizarre." Annabeth frowned as they entered the hall, Thalia, Nico and Grover behind them.

"Maybe we should give them something worth talking about." Percy whispered in Annabeth's ear.

"Like what?" Annabeth breathed in reply before Percy kissed Annabeth so lightly, it looked as if it had never happened. Percy became more adventurous and kissed Annabeth fully on the mouth, making her sigh in content. Silence flooded the room as Percy and Annabeth's lips moved in synchronisation. It was a short kiss, but it certainly pushed all of Athena's buttons as she stormed out of the room, giving evil glares to Percy as she did so.

"So…" Apollo laughed, interrupting the silence that had overtaken the room. "Anyone want to hear another poem?" He grinned cheekily.

"NO! I mean, we'd loved to… Oh, who am I kidding? Apollo, we _do not_ want to listen to another _amazing _poem of yours." Artemis replied.

"Yeah… I'd much rather read the next chapter." Hestia agreed.

"Yes, yes, I'd like to do that very much. Hestia, would you like to read?" Hera asked her sister.

"I'd love to, where's the book?"

"I got it!" Hermes cried, rushing over to give the goddess the book.

"Brilliant, everyone ready?" Hestia asked everyone, opening up to the new chapter. Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, Nico and Grover rushed to their seats, eager to listen to the next part of the book.

"Chapter Six, My Cookies Get Scorched." Hestia announced, sending a questioning glance at Percy and Nico/

**I don't recommend shadow travel if you're scared of:  
a) The dark  
b) Cold shivers up your spine  
c) Strange noises  
d) Going so fast you feel like your face is peeling off**

"Don't you hate that, Persephone?" Demeter asked her daughter who decided upon saying nothing in return.

"I doubt Persephone hates those things, she does live in the Underworld." Artemis reminded Demeter.

"That's the problem, isn't it, dearie?" Demeter raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow at her daughter, who nodded along, smiling for the Queen of the Underworld had no wish to argue with her mother once more.**  
In other words, I thought it was awesome. **

"Naturally." Triton rolled his eyes and snickered.

**One minute I couldn't see anything. I could only feel Mrs. O'Leary's fur and my fingers wrapped around the bronze links of her dog collar.  
The next minute the shadows melted into a new scene. We were on a cliff in the woods of Connecticut. At least, it looked like Connecticut from the few times I'd been there: lots of trees, low stone walls, big houses. Down one side of the cliff, a highway cut through a ravine. Down the other side was someone's backyard. The property was huge-more wilderness than lawn. The house was a two-story white Colonial. Despite the fact that it was right on the other side of the hill from a highway, it felt like it was in the middle of nowhere. I could see a light glowing m the kitchen window. A rusty old swing set stood under an apple tree.**

"Connecticut… how did you learn she was from Connecticut?" Hermes asked Nico.

"I asked some camp members when I first came to Camp Half-Blood." Nico replied.**  
I couldn't imagine living in a house like this, with an actual yard and everything. I'd lived in a tiny apartment or a school dorm my whole life. If this was Luke's home, I wondered why he'd ever wanted to leave.**

"It wasn't the house that was the problem." Hermes gritted his teeth.**  
Mrs. O'Leary staggered. I remembered what Nico had said about shadow travel draining her, so I slipped off her back. She let out a huge toothy yawn that would've scared a T. Rex, then turned in a circle and flopped down so hard the ground shook.  
Nico appeared right next to me, as if the shadows had darkened and created him. He stumbled, but I caught his arm.  
"I'm okay," he managed, rubbing his eyes.  
"How did you do that?"  
"Practice. A few times running into walls. A few accidental trips to China."**

"And you didn't even pick me up any souvenirs. Shame on you." Thalia pouted.**  
Mrs. O'Leary started snoring. If it hadn't been for the roar of traffic behind us, I'm sure she would've woken up the whole neighbourhood.  
"Are you going to take a nap too?" I asked Nico.  
He shook his head. "The first time I shadow travelled, I passed out for a week. Now it just makes me a little drowsy, but I can't do it more than once or twice a night. Mrs. O'Leary won't be going anywhere for a while."  
"So we've got some quality time in Connecticut." I gazed at the white Colonial house. "What now?"  
"We ring the doorbell," Nico said.  
If I were Luke's mom, I would not have opened my door at night for two strange kids. But I wasn't anything like Luke's mom.**

"I'd hope not." Poseidon commented dryly. Poseidon was remaining calm in relation to Percy's choice in girlfriend for he did not know what to think just yet. The girl seemed to be good for him, she's more analytical and thinks before she acts. But Annabeth was the daughter of Athena and Percy was the son of Poseidon, it was in their nature to clash.**  
I knew that even before we reached the front door. The sidewalk was lined with those little stuffed beanbag animals you see in gift shops. There were miniature lions, pigs, dragons, hydras, even a teeny Minotaur in a little Minotaur diaper. **

A few snorted and snickered at this. Obsessed much?

**Judging from their sad shape, the beanbag creatures had been sitting out here a long time-since the snow melted last spring at least. One of the hydras had a tree sapling sprouting between its necks.  
The front porch was infested with wind chimes. Shiny bits of glass and metal clinked in the breeze. Brass ribbons tinkled like water and made me realize I needed to use the bathroom. I didn't know how Ms. Castellan could stand all the noise.  
The front door was painted turquoise. The name CASTELLAN was written in English, and below in Greek: Διοικητής φρουρίου.  
Nico looked at me. "Ready?"  
He'd barely tapped the door when it swung open.  
"Luke!" the old lady cried happily.**

"Old lady?"

"You know May went through some bad experiences, Zeus."**  
She looked like someone who enjoyed sticking her fingers in electrical sockets. Her white hair stuck out in tufts all over her head. Her pink housedress was covered in scorch marks and smears of ash. When she smiled, her face looked unnaturally stretched, and the high-voltage light in her eves made me wonder if she was blind.  
"Oh, my dear boy!" She hugged Nico. **

"That must have been awkward." Aphrodite remarked.

"One of the oddest hugs ever." Nico agreed.

**I was trying to figure out why she thought Nico was Luke (they looked absolutely nothing alike), when she smiled at me and said, "Luke!"**

"Wait, I thought Nico was Luke, but now Percy is?"

"Like I said before, May went through some tough times." Hermes answered, reminding everyone of his previous words.**  
She forgot all about Nico and gave me a hug. She smelled like burned cookies. **

"You pick up the oddest, little details, don't you?" Aphrodite smiled at Percy.

"I guess so."

**She was as thin as a scarecrow, but that didn't stop her from almost crushing me.  
"Come in!" she insisted. "I have your lunch ready!"  
She ushered us inside. The living room was even weirder than the front lawn. Mirrors and candles filled every available space. I couldn't look anywhere without seeing my own reflection. Above the mantel, a little bronze Hermes flew around the second hand of a ticking clock. I tried to imagine the god of messengers ever falling in love with this old woman, but the idea was too bizarre.**

"She was different back when we were together; happier, more alive." Hermes defended May in an almost dreamlike trance.**  
Then I noticed the framed picture on the mantel, and I froze. It was exactly like Rachel's sketch-Luke around nine years old, with blond hair and a big smile and two missing teeth. The lack of a scar on his face made him look like a different person-carefree and happy. How could Rachel have known about that picture?**

"Apollo, how does the mortal know about the picture?" Zeus demanded.

"I'm not sure… I have suspicions, but nothing seems to add up." Apollo frowned.

"I thought this was your area of expertise." Ares mocked Apollo innocently.

"Yeah, but still… it doesn't make any sense." **  
"This way, my dear!" Ms. Castellan steered me toward the back of the house. "Oh, I told them you would come back. I knew it!"**

"Who's them?" Hestia looked up from the book.

"Guessing from the way she was, everyone and anyone who would listen." Nico replied.**  
She sat us down at the kitchen table. Stacked on the counter were hundreds-I mean hundreds-of Tupperware boxes with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches inside. The ones on the bottom were green and fuzzy, like they'd been there for a long time. The smell reminded me of my sixth grade locker-and that's not a good thing.**

"I can only dare to imagine your sixth grade locker, Perseus." Persephone commented dryly.**  
On top of the oven was a stack of cookie sheets. Each one had a dozen burned cookies on it. In the sink was a mountain of empty plastic Kool-Aid pitchers. A beanbag Medusa sat by the faucet like she was guarding the mess.  
Ms. Castellan started humming as she got out peanut butter and jelly and started making a new sandwich. Something was burning in the oven. I got the feeling more cookies were on the way.**

"Um, Hermes?"

"Yes, Hera?"

"I know you say that this mortal was once a very normal mortal, but, at the moment, she's a bit of loon."

"You just figured that out?"

"Shut up, Ares!"**  
Above the sink, taped all around the window, were dozens of little pictures cut from magazines and newspaper ads-pictures of Hermes from the FTD Flowers logo and Quickie Cleaners, pictures of the caduceus from medical ads.**

"Why were you on a Quickie Cleaner?" Grover asked.

"It's a long story that involves a circus, a little girl and thirteen ducks." Hermes nodded, smiling cheerily.

"O-kay…" **  
My heart sank. I wanted to get out of that room, but Ms. Castellan kept smiling at me as she made the sandwich, like she was making sure I didn't bolt.  
Nico coughed. "Urn, Ms. Castellan?"  
"Mm?"  
"We need to ask you about your son."  
"Oh, yes! They told me he would never come back. But I knew better." She patted my cheek affectionately, giving me peanut butter racing stripes.  
"When did you last see him?" Nico asked.  
Her eyes lost focus.**

"She can get crazier?!" Ares snickered into Aphrodite's ear. The love goddess playfully slapped him and pressed her index finger to her lips, silently asking him to be quiet. **  
"He was so young when he left," she said wistfully. "Third grade. That's too young to run away! He said he'd be back for lunch. And I waited. He likes peanut butter sandwiches and cookies and Kool-Aid. He'll be back for lunch very soon. . . ." Then she looked at me and smiled. "Why, Luke, there you are! You look so handsome. You have your father's eyes."**

"I feel so bad for her." Annabeth bit her lip.

"As do I." Apollo agreed solemnly. **  
She turned toward the pictures of Hermes above the sink. "Now, there's a good man. Yes, indeed. He comes to visit me, you know."  
The clock kept ticking in the other room. I wiped the peanut butter off my face and looked at Nico pleadingly, like Can we get out of here now?  
"Ma'am," Nico said. "What, uh . . . what happened to your eyes?"  
Her gaze seemed fractured-like she was trying to focus on him through a kaleidoscope. "Why, Luke, you know the story. It was right before you were born, wasn't it? I'd always been special, able to see through the . . . whatever-they-call-it."  
"The Mist?" I said.  
"Yes, dear." She nodded encouragingly. "And they offered me an important job. That's how special I was!"  
I glanced at Nico, but he looked as confused as I was.  
"What sort of job?" I asked. "What happened?"  
Ms. Castellan frowned. Her knife hovered over the sandwich bread. "Dear me, it didn't work out, did it? Your father warned me not to try. He said it was too dangerous. But I had to. It was my destiny! And now . . . I still can't get the images out of my head. They make everything seem so fuzzy. Would you like some cookies?"  
She pulled a tray out of the oven and dumped a dozen lumps of chocolate chip charcoal on the table.**

"What a… unique recipe." Triton spent his time finding the right word to describe the cookies.**  
"Luke was so kind," Ms. Castellan murmured. "He left to protect me, you know. He said if he went away, the monsters wouldn't threaten me. But I told him the monsters are no threat! They sit outside on the sidewalk all day, and they never come in." She picked up the little stuffed Medusa from the windowsill. "Do they, Mrs. Medusa? No, no threat at all." She beamed at me. "I'm so glad you came home. I knew you weren't ashamed of me!"  
I shifted in my seat. I imagined being Luke sitting at this table, eight or nine years old, and just beginning to realize that my mother wasn't all there.  
"Ms. Castellan," I said.  
"Mom," she corrected.  
"Um, yeah. Have you seen Luke since he left home?"  
"Well, of course!"**

"Is she being serious or is she in her loony stage?" Hades asked Percy and Nico.

"Wait and see… it's coming up in this chapter. It'll go into better detail anyway." Percy replied.**  
I didn't know if she was imagining that or not. For all I knew, every time the mailman came to the door he was Luke. But Nico sat forward expectantly.  
"When?" he asked. "When did Luke visit you last?"  
"Well, it was . . . Oh goodness . . ." A shadow passed across her face. "The last time, he looked so different. A scar. A terrible scar, and his voice so full of pain . . ."  
"His eyes," I said. "Were they gold?"  
"Gold?" She blinked. "No. How silly. Luke has blue eyes. Beautiful blue eyes!"  
So Luke really had been here, and this had happened before last summer- before he'd turned into Kronos.  
"Ms. Castellan?" Nico put his hand on the old woman's arm. "This is very important. Did he ask you for anything?"  
She frowned as if trying to remember. "My-my blessing. Isn't that sweet?" She looked at us uncertainly. **

"Going to the chapel and we're gonna get married!" Aphrodite sang as Hera hummed along to the song.

**"He was going to a river, and he said he needed my blessing. I gave it to him. Of course I did."**

"A river? What river? Why would he need her- Oh!" Hades realised. **  
Nico looked at me triumphantly. "Thank you, ma'am. That's all the information we-"  
Ms. Castellan gasped. She doubled over, and her cookie tray clattered to the floor. Nico and I jumped to our feet.  
"Ms. Castellan?" I said.  
"AHHHH," She straightened. I scrambled away and almost fell over the kitchen table, because her eyes-her eyes were glowing green.**

"Imagine growing up around that every day." Thalia thought aloud.**  
"My child," she rasped in a much deeper voice. "Must protect him! Hermes, help! Not my child! Not his fate-no!"  
She grabbed Nico by the shoulders and began to shake him as if to make him understand. "Not his fate!"  
Nico made a strangled scream and pushed her away. He gripped the hilt of his sword. "Percy, we need to get out-"  
Suddenly Ms. Castellan collapsed. I lurched forward and caught her before she could hit the edge of the table. I managed to get her into a chair.**

"That's sweet of you. Picking an old lady up off the floor." Demeter smiled at Percy.

"She is not old!" Hermes persisted.**  
"Ms. C?" I asked.  
She muttered something incomprehensible and shook her head. "Goodness. I . . . I dropped the cookies. How silly of me."  
She blinked, and her eyes were back to normal-or at least, what they had been before. The green glow was gone.  
"Are you okay?" I asked.  
"Well, of course, dear. I'm fine. Why do you ask?"  
I glanced at Nico, who mouthed the word Leave.  
"Ms. C, you were telling us something," I said. "Something about your son."  
"Was I?" she said dreamily. "Yes, his blue eyes. We were talking about his blue eyes. Such a handsome boy!"  
"We have to go," Nico said urgently. "We'll tell Luke . . . uh, we'll tell him you said hello."  
"But you can't leave!" Ms. Castellan got shakily to her feet, and I backed away. I felt silly being scared of a frail old woman, but the way her voice had changed, the way she'd grabbed Nico . . .  
"Hermes will be here soon," she promised. "He'll want to see his boy!"  
"Maybe next time," I said. "Thank you for-" I looked down at the burned cookies scattered on the floor. "Thanks for everything."  
She tried to stop us, to offer us Kool-Aid, but I had to get out of that house. On the front porch, she grabbed my wrist and I almost jumped out of my skin. "Luke, at least be safe. Promise me you'll be safe."  
"I will . . . Mom."  
That made her smile.**

"Thank you." Hermes told Percy. May was driven out of her mind; she needed hope even if it made no sense to any other.

**She released my wrist, and as she closed the front door I could hear her talking to the candles: "You hear that? He will be safe. I told you he would be!"  
As the door shut, Nico and I ran. The little beanbag animals on the sidewalk seemed to grin at us as we passed.  
Back at the cliff, Mrs. O'Leary had found a friend.  
A cozy campfire crackled in a ring of stones. A girl about eight years old was sitting cross-legged next to Mrs. O'Leary, scratching the hellhound's ears.**

"What is up with this neighbourhood?" Poseidon shook his head.**  
The girl had mousy brown hair and a simple brown dress. She wore a scarf over her head so she looked like a pioneer kid-like the ghost of Little House on the Prairie or something. She poked the fire with a stick, and it seemed to glow more richly red than a normal fire.**

"Me!" Hestia declared happily.**  
"Hello," she said.  
My first thought was: monster. **

"I beg your pardon?"

**When you're a demigod and you find a sweet little girl alone in the woods-that's typically a good time to draw your sword and attack. Plus, the encounter with Ms. Castellan had rattled me pretty bad.  
But Nico bowed to the little girl. "Hello again, Lady."  
She studied me with eyes as red as the firelight. I decided it was safest to bow.  
"Sit, Percy Jackson," she said. "Would you like some dinner?  
After staring at moldy peanut butter sandwiches and burned cookies, I didn't have much of an appetite, but the girl waved her hand and a picnic appeared at the edge of the fire. There were plates of roast beef, baked potatoes, buttered carrots, fresh bread, and a whole bunch of other foods I hadn't had in a long time. My stomach started to rumble. It was the kind of home-cooked meal people are supposed to have but never do.**

"What are you talking about? We have those types of meals all the time!" Ares shook his head.

**The girl made a five-foot-long dog biscuit appear for Mrs. O'Leary, who happily began tearing it to shreds.  
I sat next to Nico. We picked up our food, and I was about to dig in when I thought better of it.  
I scraped part of my meal into the flames, the way we do at camp. "For the gods," I said.**

"Way to go, Percy! Not even knowing who she is, but still respecting her." Triton nodded.**  
The little girl smiled. "Thank you. As tender of the flame, I get a share of every sacrifice, you know."  
"I recognize you now," I said. "The first time I came to camp, you were sitting by the fire, in the middle of the commons area."  
"You did not stop to talk," the girl recalled sadly. "Alas, most never do. Nico talked to me. He was the first in many years. Everyone rushes about. No time for visiting family."  
"You're Hestia," I said. "Goddess of the Hearth."**

"_Now_ you get it."**  
She nodded.  
Okay . . . so she looked eight years old. I didn't ask. I'd learned that gods could look any way they pleased.  
"My lady," Nico asked, "why aren't you with the other Olympians, fighting Typhon?"  
"I'm not much for fighting." Her red eyes flickered. I realized they weren't just reflecting the flames. They were filled with flames-but not like Ares's eyes. Hestia's eyes were warm and cozy.**

"Thank you." The goddess of the hearth beamed at Percy.**  
"Besides," she said, "someone has to keep the home fires burning while the other gods are away."  
"So you're guarding Mount Olympus?" I asked.  
"'Guard' may be too strong a word. But if you ever need a warm place to sit and a home-cooked meal, you are welcome to visit. Now eat."**

"I wouldn't offer that too many times before you know it every single living demigod will be dining with Lady Hestia." Grover warned the goddess.

"I enjoy the company." Hestia shrugged before returning to the book.**  
My plate was empty before I knew it. Nico scarfed his down just as fast.  
"That was great," I said. "Thank you, Hestia."  
She nodded. "Did you have a good visit with May Castellan?"**

"Not exactly." Apollo answered for Percy and Nico.**  
For a moment I'd almost forgotten the old lady with her bright eyes and her maniacal smile, the way she'd suddenly seemed possessed.  
"What's wrong with her, exactly?" I asked.  
"She was born with a gift," Hestia said. "She could see through the Mist."  
"Like my mother," I said. And I was also thinking, like Rachel "But the glowing eyes thing-"  
"Some bear the curse of sight better than others," the goddess said sadly. "For a while, May Castellan had many talents. She attracted the attention of Hermes himself. They had a beautiful baby boy. For a brief time, she was happy. And then she went too far."  
I remembered what Ms. Castellan had said: They offered me an important job . . . It didn't work out. I wondered what kind of job left you like that.  
"One minute she was all happy," I said. "And then she was freaking out about her son's fate, like she knew he'd turned into Kronos. What happened to . . . to divide her like that?"  
The goddess's face darkened. "That is a story I do not like to tell. But May Castellan saw too much. If you are to understand your enemy Luke, you must understand his family."**

"It's always good to know everything. That's how Harry Potter won the war." Thalia stated matter-of-factly.

"Don't tell me! I haven't read the last book yet!" Hermes cried.

"Whoops!" Thalia chuckled.**  
I thought about the sad little pictures of Hermes taped above May Castellan's sink. I wondered if Ms. Castellan had been so crazy when Luke was little. That green-eyed fit could've seriously scared a nine-year-old kid. **

"If it scared a sixteen year old teenager than of course it scared a little kid."

**And if Hermes never visited, if he'd left Luke alone with his mom all those years . . .  
"No wonder Luke ran away," I said. "I mean, it wasn't right to leave his mom like that, but still- he was just a kid. Hermes shouldn't have abandoned them."**

"You weren't in my position." Hermes told Percy darkly.

"I know. Anything I said then, judging you, any of you, were a part of my opinions, but most of the time, I don't feel that way anymore. Sorry, Hermes." Percy clarified.**  
Hestia scratched behind Mrs. O'Leary's ears. The hellhound wagged her tail and accidentally knocked over a tree.  
"It's easy to judge others," Hestia warned. "But will you follow Luke's path? Seek the same powers?"**

"Really?" Hades asked.

"It was Nico's idea." Percy blamed. Hades raised an eyebrow at his son, but said nothing.**  
Nico set down his plate. "We have no choice, my lady. It's the only way Percy stands a chance."  
"Mmm." Hestia opened her hand and the fire roared. Flames shot thirty feet into the air. Heat slapped me in the face. Then the fire died back down to normal.  
"Not all powers are spectacular." Hestia looked at me. "Sometimes the hardest power to master is the power of yielding. Do you believe me?"  
"Uh-huh," I said. Anything to keep her from messing with her flame powers again.  
The goddess smiled. "You are a good hero, Percy Jackson. Not too proud. I like that. But you have much to learn. When Dionysus was made a god, I gave up my throne for him. It was the only way to avoid a civil war among the gods."**

"I can't believe I'm talking about this." Hestia murmured.**  
"It unbalanced the Council," I remembered. "Suddenly there were seven guys and five girls."  
Hestia shrugged. "It was the best solution, not a perfect one. Now I tend the fire. I fade slowly into the background. No one will ever write epic poems about the deeds of Hestia. Most demigods don't even stop to talk to me. But that is no matter. I keep the peace. I yield when necessary. Can you do this?"  
"I don't know what you mean."**

"I see your point now, Lady Hestia. But I won't for a while." Percy told the goddess.

"Why does she get a full title?" Ares muttered.**  
She studied me. "Perhaps not yet. But soon. Will you continue your quest?"  
"Is that why you're here-to warn me against going?"  
Hestia shook her head. "I am here because when all else fails, when all the other mighty gods have gone off to war, I am all that's left. Home. Hearth. I am the last Olympian. You must remember me when you face your final decision."**

"The Last Olympian! I'm reading the book that's named after me." Hestia beamed.**  
I didn't like the way she said final.**

"Neither did I." Poseidon sighed.**  
I looked at Nico, then back at Hestia's warm glowing eyes. "I have to continue, my lady. I have to stop Luke . . . I mean Kronos."  
Hestia nodded. "Very well. I cannot be of much assistance, beyond what I have already told you. But since you sacrificed to me, I can return you to your own hearth. I will see you again, Percy, on Olympus."  
Her tone was ominous, as though our next meeting would not be happy.**

"So basically, she's saying, 'See you on the battlefield, sucker.'?" Ares mocked.

"Yup, but in a much more elegant and sophisticated way." Percy answered.**  
The goddess waved her hand, and everything faded.  
Suddenly I was home. Nico and I were sitting on the couch in my mom's apartment on the Upper East Side. That was the good news. The bad news was that the rest of the living room was occupied by Mrs. O'Leary.  
I heard a muffled yell from the bedroom. Paul's voice said, "Who put this wall of fur in the doorway?"**

The council laughed.**  
"Percy?" my mom called out. "Are you here? Are you all right?"  
"I'm here!" I shouted back.  
"WOOF!" Mrs. O'Leary tried to turn in a circle to find my mom, knocking all the pictures off the walls. She's only met my mom once before (long story), but she loves her.**

"Who doesn't love your mum?" Annabeth asked, laughing as she did so.**  
It took a few minutes, but we finally got things worked out. After destroying most of the furniture in the living room and probably making our neighbors really mad, we got my parents out of the bedroom and into the kitchen, where we sat around the kitchen table. Mrs. O'Leary still took up the entire living room, but she'd settled her head in the kitchen doorway so she could see us, which made her happy. My mom tossed her a ten-pound family-size tube of ground beef, which disappeared down her gullet. Paul poured lemonade for the rest of us while I explained about our visit to Connecticut.  
"So it's true." Paul stared at me like he'd never seen me before. **

"The stepparents finding out, one of the worst parts of being a demigod." Annabeth remarked darkly, thinking of when her stepmother found out about her true parentage.

**He was wearing his white bathrobe, now covered in hellhound fur, and his salt-and-pepper hair was sticking up in every direction. "All the talk about monsters, and being a demigod . . . it's really true."  
I nodded. Last fall I'd explained to Paul who I was. My mom had backed me up. But until this moment, I don't think he really believed us.  
"Sorry about Mrs. O'Leary," I said, "destroying the living room and all."  
Paul laughed like he was delighted. "Are you kidding? This is awesome! I mean, when I saw the hoofprints on the Prius, I thought maybe. But this!"**

"Huh, that's a different reaction to the situation."

"I like him, he's funny." Triton stated simply.**  
He patted Mrs. O'Leary's snout. The living room shook-BOOM, BOOM, BOOM-which either meant a SWAT team was breaking down the door or Mrs. O'Leary was wagging her tail.  
I couldn't help but smile. Paul was a pretty cool guy, even if he was my English teacher as well as my stepdad.  
"Thanks for not freaking out," I said.  
"Oh, I'm freaking out," he promised, his eyes wide. "I just think it's awesome!"**

"Too bad there's a deadly war going on and he's in extreme danger because of his connection to Percy."**  
"Yeah, well," I said, "you may not be so excited when you hear what's happening."  
I told Paul and my mom about Typhon, and the gods, and the battle that was sure to come. Then I told them Nico's plan.  
My mom laced her fingers around her lemonade glass. She was wearing her old blue flannel bathrobe, and her hair was tied back. Recently she'd started writing a novel, like she'd wanted to do for years, and I could tell she'd been working on it late into the night, because the circles under her eyes were darker than usual.**

"Or she's been spending her nights worried that you're going to get yourself killed." Persephone suggested.

"I've done that before." Demeter sent a pointed look to Hades.**  
Behind her at the kitchen window, silvery moon lace glowed in the flower box. I'd brought the magical plant back from Calypso's island last summer, and it bloomed like crazy under my mother's care. The scent always calmed me down, but it also made me sad because it reminded me of lost friends.  
My mom took a deep breath, like she was thinking how to tell me no.  
"Percy, it's dangerous," she said. "Even for you."  
"Mom, I know. I could die. Nico explained that. But if we don't try-"  
"We'll all die," Nico said. He hadn't touched his lemonade. "Ms. Jackson, we don't stand a chance against an invasion. And there will be an invasion."  
"An invasion of New York?" Paul said. "Is that even possible? How could we not see the . . . the monsters?"  
He said the word like he still couldn't believe this was real.**

"Perce, it's not like he's gonna believe it in just five minutes." Grover rolled his eyes.

"I know that." Percy scoffed.**  
"I don't know," I admitted. "I don't see how Kronos could just march into Manhattan, but the Mist is strong. Typhon is trampling across the country right now, and mortals think he's a storm system."  
"Ms. Jackson," Nico said,**

"So formal and polite." Nico wiped away an invisible tear.

**"Percy needs your blessing. The process has to start that way. I wasn't sure until we met Luke's mom, but now I'm positive. This has only been done successfully twice before. Both times, the mother had to give her blessing. She had to be willing to let her son take the risk."**

Some of the gods were starting to piece two and two together, but still did not understand. While others were completely lost.**  
"You want me to bless this?" She shook her head. "It's crazy. Percy, please-"  
"Mom, I can't do it without you."  
"And if you survive this . . . this process?"  
"Then I go to war," I said. "Me against Kronos. And only one of us will survive."**

"Way to give your mother a heart attack." Poseidon sighed.**  
I didn't tell her the whole prophecy-about the soul reaping and the end of my days. She didn't need to know that I was probably doomed. I could only hope I'd stop Kronos and save the rest of the world before I died.  
"You're my son," she said miserably. "I can't just . . ."  
I could tell I'd have to push her harder if I wanted her to agree, but I didn't want to. I remembered poor Ms. Castellan in her kitchen, waiting for her son to come home. And I realized how lucky I was. My mom had always been there for me, always tried to make things normal for me, even with the gods and monsters and stuff.**

"Oh, that's so sweet of her." Hera cooed.

"Really good parenting." Persephone agreed.

**She put up with me going off on adventures, but now I was asking her blessing to do something that would probably get me killed.  
I locked eyes with Paul, and some kind of understanding passed between us.  
"Sally." He put his hand over my mother's hands. "I can't claim to know what you and Percy have been going through all these years, but it sounds like Percy is doing something noble. I wish I had that much courage."  
I got a lump in my throat. I didn't get compliments like that too much.**

"Everyone says it behind your back." Thalia said matter-of-factly.**  
My mom stared at her lemonade. She looked like she was trying not to cry. I thought about what Hestia had said, about how hard it was to yield, and I figured maybe my mom was finding that out.  
"Percy," she said, "I give you my blessing."**

"That poor woman." Aphrodite whimpered in sympathy.**  
I didn't feel any different. No magic glow lit the kitchen or anything.  
I glanced at Nico.  
He looked more anxious than ever, but he nodded. "It's time."  
"Percy," my mom said. "One last thing. If you . . . if you survive this fight with Kronos, send me a sign." She rummaged through her purse and handed me her cell phone.  
"Mom," I said, "you know demigods and phones-"  
"I know," she said. "But just in case. If you're not able to call . . . maybe a sign that I could see from anywhere in Manhattan. To let me know you're okay."  
"Like Theseus," Paul suggested. "He was supposed to raise white sails when he came home to Athens."**

"Yeah," Triton dragged out. "That didn't really work."**  
"Except he forgot," Nico muttered. "And his father jumped off the palace roof in despair. But other than that, it was a great idea."  
"What about a flag or a flare?" my mom said. "From Olympus-the Empire State Building."**

**"Something blue," I said.  
We'd had a running joke for years about blue food. It was my favorite color, and my mom went out of her way to humor me. Every year my birthday cake, my Easter basket, my Christmas candy canes always had to be blue.  
"Yes," my mom agreed. "I'll watch for a blue signal. And I'll try to avoid jumping off palace roofs."**

"She knows her Greek history."**  
She gave me one last hug. I tried not to feel like I was saying good-bye. I shook hands with Paul. Then Nico and I walked to the kitchen doorway and looked at Mrs. O'Leary.  
"Sorry, girl," I said. "Shadow travel time again."  
She whimpered and crossed her paws over her snout.  
"Where now?" I asked Nico. "Los Angeles?"  
"No need," he said. "There's a closer entrance to the Underworld."**

"Gah!"

"Mom! Are you okay?" Percy rushed over to Sally.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Last thing I remember is Athena asking me something and all of a sudden I was here. She mentioned something about some books?" Sally asked her son dizzily. "Hello Nico, Annabeth, Thalia, Grover, how are you all?"

"We're all great, Ms. Jackson." Grover answered politely.

"Call me Sally, all of you." Sally turned to face the Gods. "What chapter are you up to and can I read it?"


	8. C7: I Drive My Dog Into A Tree

_Hey guys,_

_I feel really bad. It's been two months since I last update. This whole situation is like a mother that neglects her baby except the whole legal thing, but don't worry I'm gonna try and be better, but that's what I said last time so don't take anything I say for honest fact._

_How are we all? Good? Brilliant. So here is another chapter and it isn't a filler chapter or an author's note or something equally as annoying so yay! Do you guys know how embarrassing it was reading the reviews and realising I did the wrong chapter? It was killer! But you just gotta persevere with this stuff and I did that chapter that goes before the last one I did which is annoying for me cause I'm really looking forward to the River Styx chapter._

_I'm just gonna fangirl right now! OMG! Mark of Athena came out! Eek! I haven't read it yet (shame on me) because I have to read this book for school and there are two other books I've been wanting to read since last year, but they only just got released kinda like the MOA and I'm in the middle of the second one! Don't tell me what happens please, but OMG! I had a countdown like a kid with Christmas or birthdays or whatever. I'm babbling, I'm gonna shut up now…_

_Thanks a bunch to cantwaittillfall for the chappie even though he gave it two me two months ago. If there are grammar or spelling mistakes, forgive me but I don't have a beta so my double checking which is of a pretty poor standard (in my standards) will have to do._

_Luff you!_

_Pattern of Night xoxo_

* * *

"Alright, chapter seven, My Teacher Gives Me A Lift." Sally read out clearly. After the mortal had arrived and Zeus had thrown a fit about a mortal visiting Mount Olympus, Sally had explained that she'd already read the books, all five of them, and Athena had appeared in her apartment demanding that she read the books with the others and then sent her to Mount Olympus.

"Chapter seven already? It doesn't seem that long." Hermes commented thoughtfully.

"Yeah, thinking about it, how did Nico and Percy meet in order to have that conversation from last chapter?" Artemis asked. All heads turned to face Percy and Nico; the cousins looked at each other.

"Was the conversation with Leneus and Juniper mentioned?" Percy asked, already sub-consciously knowing the answer.

"Nah, it kinda just jumped to that chapter." Nico shrugged.

"When I got the book, it was open on that chapter and I thought it was the right chapter." Hestia commented.

"Crap, I gave the book to Hestia opened up on the wrong page on accident of course. Sorry everyone." Hermes announced sheepishly.

"It's fine. Do you want to read chapter seven or go back and read chapter five?" Sally reassured Hermes.

"We'll read chapter five. It's only right that we read everything about my nephew's experience defeating Kronos." Zeus decided for the assembly of people.

"Okay then, chapter five, I Drive My Dog Into A Tree." Sally chuckled at the end. Her son's antics also amused her even at a young age and she hoped they always did.

"You can't drive anything can you?" Triton shook his head and laughed. "First the car and now the dog. How do you even drive a dog?"

**Mrs. O'Leary saw me before I saw her,**

"Oh, hellhounds. You can drive them or ride them." Triton realised.

"Isn't Mrs. O'Leary huge like every other hellhound?" Aphrodite asked Percy.

"Yeah…"

"Then why couldn't you see her? Hellhounds are crazy large."

"I was, uh, distracted?"

**which was a pretty good trick considering she's the size of a garbage truck. I walked into the arena, and a wall of darkness slammed into me.**

"WOOF!"

The next thing I knew I was flat on the ground with a huge paw on my chest and an oversize Brillo-pad tongue licking my face.  
"Ow!" I said. "Hey, girl. Good to see you too. Ow!"  
It took a few minutes for Mrs. O'Leary to calm down and get off me. By then I was pretty much drenched in dog drool.

"That doesn't sound too good." A fairly disgusted Persephone commented, her nose wrinkled in revolt at the image of Percy being covered in sticky, smelly drool.

**She wanted to play fetch, so I picked up a bronze shield and tossed it across the arena.  
By the way, Mrs. O'Leary is the world's only friendly hellhound. **

"Have there been other friendly hellhounds before?" Ares questioned Hades.

"I'm unsure. Possibly, it is likely that in the eons that we have lived there has been a hellhound that can stand some form of company." The God of the Underworld replied.

**I kind of inherited her when her previous owner died. She lived at camp, but Beckendorf . . . well, Beckendorf used to take care of her whenever I was gone. He had smelted Mrs. O'Leary's favorite bronze chewing bone. He'd forged her collar with the little smiley face and a crossbones name tag. Next to me, Beckendorf had been her best friend.**

"The poor thing. Does the dog know?" Demeter cooed.

"Not then. She does now. But in the book, Beckendorf had just died so she, the dog, wouldn't know." Annabeth answered.

**Thinking about that made me sad all over again, but I threw the shield a few more times because Mrs. O'Leary insisted.  
Soon she started barking-a sound slightly louder than an artillery gun-like she needed to go for a walk. The other campers didn't think it was funny when she went to the bathroom in the arena. It had caused more than one unfortunate slip-and-slide accident. So I opened the gates of the arena, and she bounded straight toward the woods.  
I jogged after her, not too concerned that she was getting ahead. Nothing in the woods could threaten Mrs. O'Leary. Even the dragons and giant scorpions ran away when she came close.**

"Dragons? There are dragons?" Hera said skeptically. She knew dragons existed, but the fact that they were at a camp was quite shocking.

"I know, it's quite unbelievable." Sally smiled at her, looking up from the book.

**When I finally tracked her down, she wasn't using the facilities. She was in a familiar clearing where the Council of Cloven Elders had once put Grover on trial. The place didn't look so good. The grass had turned yellow. The three topiary thrones had lost all their leaves. But that's not what surprised me. In the middle of the glade stood the weirdest trio I'd ever seen: Juniper the tree nymph, Nico di Angelo, and a very old, very fat satyr.**

"I'm sure Leneus would just _love_ that description, Perce." Nico told his cousin dryly.**  
Nico was the only one who didn't seem freaked out by Mrs. O'Leary's appearance. He looked pretty much like I'd seen him in my dream-an aviator's jacket, black jeans, and a T-shirt with dancing skeletons on it, like one of those Day of the Dead pictures. His Stygian iron sword hung at his side. He was only twelve, but he looked much older and sadder.**

"You're twelve?"

"Thirteen actually. My birthday was last month." Nico replied.**  
He nodded when he saw me, then went back to scratching Mrs. O'Leary's ears. She sniffed his legs like he was the most interesting thing since rib-eye steaks. Being the son of Hades, he'd probably been traveling in all sorts of hellhound-friendly places.  
The old satyr didn't look nearly so happy. "Will someone-what is this underworld creature doing in my forest!" He waved his arms and trotted on his hooves as if the grass were hot. "You there, Percy Jackson! Is this your beast?"  
"Sorry, Leneus," I said. "That's your name, right?"  
The satyr rolled his eyes. His fur was dust-bunny gray, and a spider web grew between his horns. His belly would've made him an invincible bumper car. "Well, of course I'm Leneus. Don't tell me you've forgotten a member of the Council so quickly. Now, call off your beast!"**

"Leneus was always a stick in the mud." Apollo said.**  
"WOOF!" Mrs. O'Leary said happily.  
The old satyr gulped. "Make it go away! Juniper, I will not help you under these circumstances!"  
Juniper turned toward me. She was pretty in a dryad-y way, **

"She's pretty anyway, Perseus." Grover defended his girlfriend.

**with her purple gossamer dress and her elfish face, but her eyes were green-tinted with chlorophyll from crying.  
"Percy," she sniffled. "I was just asking about Grover. I know something's happened. He wouldn't stay gone this long if he wasn't in trouble. I was hoping that Leneus-"  
"I told you!" the satyr protested. "You are better off without that traitor."**

"Grover is not a traitor!"**  
Juniper stamped her foot. "He is not a traitor! He's the bravest satyr ever, and I want to know where he is!"  
"WOOF!"  
**"See even Mrs. O'Leary agrees!"**  
Leneus's knees started knocking. "I . . . I won't answer questions with this hellhound sniffing my tail!"  
Nico looked like he was trying to not crack up.**

"You were having the time of your life watching this weren't you?" Thalia smiled.

"Yeah, pretty much."

**"I'll walk the dog," he volunteered.  
He whistled, and Mrs. O'Leary bounded after him to the far end of the grove.  
Leneus huffed indignantly and brushed the twigs off his shirt. "Now, as I was trying to explain, young lady, your boyfriend has not sent any reports since we voted him into exile."  
"You tried to vote him into exile," I corrected. "Chiron and Dionysus stopped you."**

"The prude isn't going to like that." Apollo scoffed.**  
"Bah! They are honorary Council members. It wasn't a proper vote."**

"It was. You, unhonorary Council member, are just trying to come up with excuses." Hermes said smartly.**  
"I'll tell Dionysus you said that."**

"Tattletale!" Triton cheered.**  
Leneus paled. "I only meant . . . Now see here, Jackson. This is none of your business."**

"It kinda is." Annabeth shifted her mouth from one side to the other. **  
"Grover's my friend," I said. "He wasn't lying to you about Pan's death. I saw it myself. You were just too scared to accept the truth."  
Leneus's lips quivered. "No! Grover's a liar and good riddance. We're better off without him."  
I pointed at the withered thrones. "If things are going so well, where are your friends? Looks like your Council hasn't been meeting lately.  
"Maron and Silenus . . . I . . . I'm sure they'll be back," he said, but I could hear the panic in his voice. "They're just taking some time off to think. It's been a very unsettling year.  
"It's going to get a lot more unsettling," I promised. "Leneus, we need Grover. There's got to be a way you can find him with your magic."  
The old satyr's eye twitched. "I'm telling you, I've heard nothing. Perhaps he's dead."  
Juniper choked back a sob.  
"He's not dead," I said. "I can feel that much."  
"Empathy links," Leneus said disdainfully. "Very unreliable."  
"So ask around," I insisted. "Find him. There's a war coming. Grover was preparing the nature spirits."  
"Without my permission! And it's not our war."  
I grabbed him by the shirt, which seriously wasn't like me, but the stupid old goat was making me mad.**

"He's a bit of a jerk head, isn't he?" Persephone scrunched her nose.

"Who, Percy? Yeah, he is." Nico agreed.

"I meant Leneus, but I suppose you know the pair better than I do."

**"Listen, Leneus. When Kronos attacks, he's going to have packs of hellhounds. He's going to destroy everything in his path-mortals, gods, demigods. Do you think he'll let the satyrs go free? You're supposed to be a leader. So LEAD. Get out there and see what's happening. Find Grover and bring Juniper some news. Now, GO!"**

"Way to be pushy, Waterboy." Thalia commented wryly. **  
I didn't push him very hard, but he was kind of top-heavy.**

Sally paused and gave her son a look. Grover nudged Percy and pointed towards the demigod's mother. Percy gave her a "what?" look and Sally gave her son a light frown before continuing to read.

**He fell on his furry rump, then scrambled to his hooves and ran away with his belly jiggling. "Grover will never be accepted! He will die an outcast!"  
When he'd disappeared into the bushes, Juniper wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry, Percy. I didn't mean to get you involved. Leneus is still a lord of the Wild. You don't want to make an enemy of him."  
"No problem," I said. "I've got worse enemies than overweight satyrs."**

"I highly doubt a satyr could do something to harm a demigod that has to go against one of the most powerful beings ever." Ares shrugged.

"Way to make me nervous!" Poseidon grumbled.

"Dad, you know I live through it all." Percy replied.

"Well, it doesn't make a difference."**  
Nico walked back to us. "Good job, Percy. Judging from the trail of goat pellets, I'd say you shook him up pretty well."  
I was afraid I knew why Nico was here, but I tried for a smile. "Welcome back. Did you come by just to see Juniper?"  
He blushed.**

"Do you like her?" Aphrodite moved forward to edge of her seat.

"No! No! Juniper's pretty cute and nice and everything, but she's not my type. I'm only thirteen."

"When I was thirteen, I already had a few boyfriends or whatever you'd call it back in the days." Aphrodite said.

"Weren't you born an adult?" Nico asked.

"Yeah." Aphrodite muttered quietly, ending the topic.

**"Um, no. That was an accident. I kind of . . . dropped into the middle of their conversation."  
"He scared us to death!" Juniper said. "Right out of the shadows. But, Nico, you are the son of Hades and all. Are you sure you haven't heard anything about Grover?"  
Nico shifted his weight. "Juniper, like I tried to tell you . . . even if Grover died, he would reincarnate into something else in nature. I can't sense things like that, only mortal souls."  
"But if you do hear anything?" she pleaded, putting her hand on his arm. "Anything at all?"  
Nico's cheeks got even brighter red. **

Aphrodite opened her mouth, but Nico sent her a piercing glare which softened into a pleading expression causing the goddess to close her mouth and say nothing.

**"Uh, you bet. I'll keep my ears open."  
"We'll find him, Juniper," I promised. "Grover's alive, I'm sure. There must be a simple reason why he hasn't contacted us."  
She nodded glumly. "I hate not being able to leave the forest. He could be anywhere, and I'm stuck here waiting. Oh, if that silly goat has gotten himself hurt-"  
Mrs. O'Leary bounded back over and took an interest in Juniper's dress.  
Juniper yelped. "Oh, no you don't! I know about dogs and trees. I'm gone!"**

Laughs echoed around the room because who didn't know about dogs and trees?**  
She went poof into green mist. Mrs. O'Leary looked disappointed, but she lumbered off to find another target, leaving Nico and me alone.  
Nico tapped his sword on the ground. A tiny mound of animal bones erupted from the dirt. They knit themselves together into a skeletal field mouse and scampered off. "I was sorry to hear about Beckendorf."  
A lump formed in my throat. "How did you-"  
"I talked to his ghost."  
"Oh . . . right." I'd never get used to the fact that this twelve-year-old kid spent more time talking with the dead than the living.**

"I've had quite the childhood." Nico smiled.

**"Did he say anything?"  
"He doesn't blame you. He figured you'd be beating yourself up, and he said you shouldn't."  
"Is he going to try for rebirth?"  
Nico shook his head. "He's staying in Elysium. Said he's waiting for someone. Not sure what he meant, but he seems okay with death."**

"Who's he waiting for?" Aphrodite asked Nico.

"He didn't say. Still hasn't."**  
It wasn't much comfort, but it was something.  
"I had a vision you were on Mount Tarn," I told Nico. "Was that-"  
"Real," he said. "I didn't mean to be spying on the Titans, but I was in the neighborhood."**

"You know, I was just casually going for a walk on a mountain and I just casually ended up listening in on a top secret conversation as you do." Nico shrugged.**  
"Doing what?"  
Nico tugged at his sword belt. "Following a lead on . . . you know, my family."**

The tension between Hades and Persephone got strong at the mention of Nico's mother and other family.**  
I nodded. I knew his past was a painful subject. Until two years ago, he and his sister Bianca had been frozen in time at a place called the Lotus Hotel and Casino. They'd been there for like seventy years. Eventually a mysterious lawyer rescued them and checked them into a boarding school, but Nico had no memories of his life before the casino. He didn't know anything about his mother. He didn't know who the lawyer was, or why they'd been frozen in time or allowed to go free. After Bianca died and left Nico alone, he'd been obsessed with finding answers.  
"So how did it go?" I asked. "Any luck?"  
"No," he murmured. "But I may have a new lead soon."  
"What's the lead?"**

"What _is_ the lead? You never said." Percy asked.

"I'll tell you later."**  
Nico chewed his lip. "That's not important right now. You know why I'm here."  
A feeling of dread started to build in my chest. Ever since Nico first proposed his plan for beating Kronos last summer, I'd had nightmares about it.**

"That bad." Poseidon cringed.

**He would show up occasionally and press me for an answer, but I kept putting him off.  
"Nico, I don't know," I said. "It seems pretty extreme."  
"You've got Typhon coming in, what . . . a week? Most of the other Titans are unleashed now and on Kronos's side. Maybe it's time to think extreme."**

"He has a point." Hera agreed.**  
I looked back toward the camp. Even from this distance I could hear the Ares and Apollo campers fighting again, yelling curses and spouting bad poetry.  
"They're no match for the Titan army," Nico said. "You know that. This comes down to you and Luke. And there's only one way you can beat Luke."**

"It's true. There are some talented warriors at the camp, but they aren't good enough to go against experienced titans." Zeus agreed wisely.**  
I remembered the fight on the Princess Andromeda. I'd been hopelessly outmatched. Kronos had almost killed me with a single cut to my arm, and I couldn't even wound him. Riptide had glanced right off his skin.  
"We can give you the same power," Nico urged. **

**"You heard the Great Prophecy. Unless you want to have your soul reaped by a cursed blade . . ."  
I wondered how Nico had heard the prophecy- probably from some ghost.  
"You can't prevent a prophecy," I said.  
"But you can fight it." Nico had a strange, hungry light in his eyes. "You can become invincible."  
"Maybe we should wait. Try to fight without-"  
"No!" Nico snarled. "It has to be now!"**

"You okay?"

"I'm fine and I was then too."**  
I stared at him. I hadn't seen his temper flare like that in a long time. "Urn, you sure you're okay?"  
He took a deep breath. "Percy, all I mean . . . when the fighting starts, we won't be able to make the journey. This is our last chance. I'm sorry if I'm being too pushy, but two years ago my sister gave her life to protect you. I want you to honor that. Do whatever it takes to stay alive and defeat Kronos."**

"Nico has a point." Hades stared at Percy.

"I know he does."**  
I didn't like the idea. Then I thought about Annabeth calling me a coward, and I got angry.**

"Don't tell me I became a part of this." Annabeth complained.**  
Nico had a point. If Kronos attacked New York, the campers would be no match for his forces. I had to do something. Nico's way was dangerous-maybe even deadly. But it might give me a fighting edge.  
"All right," I decided. "What do we do first?"  
His cold creepy smile made me sorry I'd agreed.**

"I'm never going to look at you the same way ever again."

**"First we'll need to retrace Luke's steps. We need to know more about his past, his childhood."  
I shuddered, thinking about Rachel's picture from my dream-a smiling nine-year-old Luke. "Why do we need to know about that?"  
"I'll explain when we get there," Nico said. "I've already tracked down his mother. She lives in Connecticut."  
I stared at him. I'd never thought much about Luke's mortal parent. I'd met his dad, Hermes, but his mom . . .  
"Luke ran away when he was really young," I said. "I didn't think his mom was alive."  
"Oh, she's alive." The way he said it made me wonder what was wrong with her. What kind of horrible person could she be?**

"She isn't horrible!" Hermes defended May.

"I know that, I just didn't know what she was like. I thought she might've been mean and cold." Percy replied quickly.**  
"Okay . . ." I said. "So how do we get to Connecticut? I can call Blackjack-"  
"No." Nico scowled. "Pegasi don't like me, and the feeling is mutual. But there's no need for flying." He whistled, and Mrs. O'Leary came loping out of the woods.  
"Your friend here can help." Nico patted her head. "You haven't tried shadow travel yet?"  
"Shadow travel?"  
Nico whispered in Mrs. O'Leary's ear. She tilted her head, suddenly alert.  
"Hop on board," Nico told me.  
I'd never considered riding a dog before, bur Mrs. O'Leary was certainly big enough. I climbed onto her back and held her collar.  
"This will make her very tired," Nico warned, "so you can't do it often. And it works best at night. But all shadows are part of the same substance. There is only one darkness, and creatures of the Underworld can use it as a road, or a door."  
"I don't understand," I said.**

"I can almost hear my mother's retort that is impossible to argue with." Annabeth commented.**  
"No," Nico said. "It took me a long time to learn. But Mrs. O'Leary knows. Tell her where to go. Tell her Westport, the home of May Castellan."  
"You're not coming?"  
"Don't worry," he said. "I'll meet you there."  
I was a little nervous, but I leaned down to Mrs. O'Leary's ear. "Okay, girl. Uh, can you take me to Westport, Connecticut? May Castellan's place?"  
Mrs. O'Leary sniffed the air. She looked into the gloom of the forest. Then she bounded forward, straight into an oak tree.  
Just before we hit, we passed into shadows as cold as the dark side of the moon.  
**"And that's it! Who's next?"**  
**


	9. C8: My Maths Teacher Gives Me A Lift

_Hello FanFictioners,  
So it's me again. Neglecting my baby. Yeah, really sorry about that. I've had end of year prep and it's been REALLY annoying, but I'm here now and I've got a beta. I finished Mark of Athena, god what a cliffy (literally). I'd like to thank cantwaittillfall and everyone who's reviewed or followed or favourited. Anyway, this is chapter SEVEN of reading and chapter NINE all together (including my AN) and now I'm back on track after that weird skip I did previously. Enjoy!  
Thanks,  
Pattern of Night xoxo  
(Don't forget to review or favourite or follow!)_

* * *

"Alright," Nico announced, wiggling his bum deeper into the chair obviously and somewhat obnoxiously. "Chapter seven, My Maths Teacher Gives Me A Lift."  
"Percy, did you into a car with teacher?" Sally asked her son suspiciously, she'd just watched a documentary on child kidnapping and was _slightly_ (majorly) concerned. **  
We emerged in Central Park just north of the Pond. Mrs. O'Leary looked pretty tired as she limped over to a cluster of boulders. She started sniffing around, and I was afraid she might mark her territory,  
**"What the…?" Thalia laughed, trailing off.  
**but Nico said, "It's okay. She just smells the way home."  
I frowned. "Through the rocks?"  
"The Underworld has two major entrances," Nico said. "You know the one in L.A."  
"Charon's ferry."  
Nico nodded. "Most souls go that way, but there's a smaller path, harder to find. The Door of Orpheus."  
"The dude with the harp."  
"Dude with the lyre," Nico corrected.  
**"You called him the dude with the harp in front of him, didn't you?" Percy gave Nico a look.  
Nico flushed and Percy chuckled.  
** "But yeah, him. He used his music to charm the earth and open a new path into the Underworld. He sang his way right into Hades's palace and almost got away with his wife's soul."  
**"But, he didn't." Hades smirked smugly. **  
I remembered the story. Orpheus wasn't supposed to look behind him when he was leading his wife back to the world, but of course he did. It was one of those typical "and-so-they-died/the-end" stories that always made us feel warm and fuzzy.  
**"If I didn't know that Percy loves sarcasm and that these books are in his point of view, I'd totally think this was in, like, Zeus or Hades's point of view." Aphrodite commented.**  
"So this is the Door of Orpheus." I tried to be impressed, but it still looked like a pile of rocks to me.  
**"Things don't need to be made out of solid gold with jewels adorning it for it to be special, Seaweed Brain." Annabeth rolled her eyes.**  
"How does it open?"  
"We need music," Nico said. "How's your singing?"  
**"Singing? I love singing!" Apollo cheered. "_Don't cha wish your girlfriend was hot like me, don't cha wish your girlfriend was a freak like me!" _The god of music sang loudly in an off-pitch rendition of Don't Cha by the Pussycat Dolls.  
"Er, Apollo?" Nico interrupted the god hesitantly. "As much as I, uh, regret to, uh, say this, but we should really get on with the chapter."  
"Fine, if we must." Apollo agreed begrudgingly.**  
"Um, no. Can't you just, like, tell it to open? You're the son of Hades and all."  
"It's not so easy. We need music."  
I was pretty sure if I tried to sing, all I would cause was an avalanche.  
"I have a better idea." I turned and called, "GROVER!"  
We waited for a long time. Mrs. O'Leary curled up and took a nap. I could hear the crickets in the woods and an owl hooting. Traffic hummed along Central Park West. Horse hooves clopped down a nearby path, maybe a mounted police patrol. I was sure they'd love to find two kids hanging out in the park at one in the morning.  
"It's no good," Nico said at last.  
But I had a feeling. My empathy link was really tingling for the first time in months, which either meant a whole lot of people had suddenly switched on the Nature Channel, or Grover was close.  
**"Why would someone willingly watch the Nature Channel unless it has an underwater documentary? Everything else is super boring." Triton scoffed.  
"The Nature Channel is a resourceful and valuable channel which teaches mortals about nature, don't underestimate it!" Demeter shrilled.**  
I shut my eyes and concentrated. Grover.  
I knew he was somewhere in the park. Why couldn't I sense his emotions? All I got was a faint hum in the base of my skull.  
Grover, I thought more insistently.  
Hmm-hmmmm, something said.  
**Grover blushed a brilliant red as Thalia and Percy cheekily smiled at him.**  
An image came into my head. I saw a giant elm tree deep in the woods, well off the main paths. Gnarled roots laced the ground, making a kind of bed. Lying in it with his arms crossed and his eyes closed was a satyr. At first I couldn't be sure it was Grover. He was covered in twigs and leaves, like he'd been sleeping there a long time. The roots seemed to be shaping themselves around him, slowly pulling him into the earth.  
Grover, I said. Wake up.  
Unnnh-zzzzz.  
Dude, you're covered in dirt. Wake up!  
Sleepy, his mind murmured.  
FOOD, I suggested. PANCAKES!  
His eyes shot open.  
**"That's exactly how I wake up my brothers in the morning." Annabeth commented.**  
A blur of thoughts filled my head like he was suddenly on fast-forward. The image shattered, and I almost fell over.  
"What happened?" Nico asked.  
"I got through. He's . . . yeah. He's on his way."  
A minute later, the tree next to us shivered. Grover fell out of the branches, right on his head.  
"Grover!" I yelled.  
"Woof!" Mrs. O'Leary looked up, probably wondering if we were going to play fetch with the satyr.  
**"Well, that's lovely…" Sally trailed off. **  
"Blah-haa-haa!" Grover bleated.  
"You okay, man?"  
"Oh, I'm fine." He rubbed his head. His horns had grown so much they poked an inch above his curly hair. "I was at the other end of the park. The dryads had this great idea of passing me through the trees to get me here. They don't understand height very well."  
He grinned and got to his feet-well, his hooves, actually. Since last summer, Grover had stopped trying to disguise himself as human. He never wore a cap or fake feet anymore. He didn't even wear jeans, since he had furry goat legs from the waist down. His T-shirt had a picture from that book Where the Wild Things Are.  
**"I love that book!" Persephone cooed.  
"So do I." Grover agreed.  
"I like you already." Persephone smiled at Grover who once again flushed a bright red. **  
It was covered with dirt and tree sap. His goatee looked fuller, almost manly (or goatly?), and he was as tall as me now.  
"Good to see you, G-man," I said. "You remember Nico."  
Grover nodded at Nico, then he gave me a big hug. He smelled like fresh-mown lawns.  
"Perrrrcy!" he bleated. "I missed you! I miss camp. They don't serve very good enchiladas in the wilderness."  
**"I should hope not." Hermes said.  
"I remember a few decades ago, nearly everyone begged to have enchiladas in the palace so I decided to agree. Let's just say it didn't work out too well." Poseidon told the group.  
"I remember that! It was hilarious." Triton laughed.**  
"I was worried," I said. "Where've you been the last two months?"  
"The last two-" Grover's smile faded. "The last two months? What are you talking about?"  
"We haven't heard from you," I said. "Juniper's worried. We sent Iris-messages, but-"  
"Hold on." He looked up at the stars like he was trying to calculate his position. "What month is this?"**

"August."

The color drained from his face. "That's impossible. It's June. I just lay down to take a nap and . . ." He grabbed my arms. "I remember now! He knocked me out. Percy, we have to stop him!"

"Ya can't catch a break, can ya?" Thalia turned to her cousin.  
"You get used to it… eventually." Percy shrugged.**  
"Whoa," I said. "Slow down. Tell me what happened."  
He took a deep breath. "I was . . . I was walking in the woods up by Harlem Meer. And I felt this tremble in the ground, like something powerful was near."  
"You can sense stuff like that?" Nico asked.  
Grover nodded. "Since Pan's death, I can feel when something is wrong in nature. It's like my ears and eyes are sharper when I'm in the Wild. Anyway, I started following the scent. This man in a long black coat was walking through the park, and I noticed he didn't cast a shadow. Middle of a sunny day, and he cast no shadow. He kind of shimmered as he moved."  
"Like a mirage?" Nico asked.  
"Yes," Grover said. "And whenever he passed humans-"  
"The humans would pass out," Nico said. "Curl up and go to sleep."  
"That's right! Then after he was gone, they'd get up and go about their business like nothing happened."  
**"Not Morpheus." Zeus groaned. "Hate that guy." He muttered quietly to Hera, who agreed eagerly.**  
I stared at Nico. "You know this guy in black?"  
"Afraid so," Nico said. "Grover, what happened?"  
"I followed the guy. He kept looking up at the buildings around the park like he was making estimates or something. This lady jogger ran by, and she curled up on the sidewalk and started snoring. The guy in black put his hand on her forehead like he was checking her temperature. Then he kept walking. By this time, I knew he was a monster or something even worse. I followed him into this grove, to the base of a big elm tree. I was about to summon some dryads to help me capture him when he turned and . . ."  
Grover swallowed. "Percy, his face. I couldn't make out his face because it kept shifting. Just looking at him made me sleepy. I said, 'What are you doing?' He said, 'Just having a look around. You should always scout a battlefield before the battle.' I said something really smart like, 'This forest is under my protection. You won't start any battles here!'  
**No one really had the heart to tell Grover what he said really wasn't that smart so everyone kept their mouth shut as Grover beamed proudly at his "smart" retort.**  
And he laughed. He said, 'You're lucky I'm saving my energy for the main event, little satyr. I'll just grant you a short nap. Pleasant dreams.' And that's the last thing I remember."  
Nico exhaled. "Grover, you met Morpheus, the God of Dreams. You're lucky you ever woke up."  
"Two months," Grover moaned. "He put me to sleep for two months!"  
I tried to wrap my mind around what this meant. Now it made sense why we hadn't been able to contact Grover all this time.  
"Why didn't the nymphs try to wake you?" I asked.  
Grover shrugged. "Most nymphs aren't good with time. Two months for a tree-that's nothing. They probably didn't think anything was wrong."  
"We've got to figure out what Morpheus was doing in the park," I said. "I don't like this 'main event' thing he mentioned."  
"He's working for Kronos," Nico said. "We know that already. A lot of the minor gods are. This just proves there's going to be an invasion. Percy, we have to get on with our plan."  
**"When is this plan going to be revealed again?" Artemis inquired.  
"Yeah, this is taking for-ev-er!" Apollo moaned.  
"Stop being such a girl and suck it up." Artemis rolled her eyes at her brother's childish behaviour.  
"It's only the eighth chapter. It'll be explained soon enough." Nico replied before beginning to read again.**  
"Wait," Grover said. "What plan?"  
We told him, and Grover started tugging at his leg fur.  
"You're not serious," he said. "Not the Underworld again."  
"I'm not asking you to come, man," I promised. "I know you just woke up. But we need some music to open the door. Can you do it?"  
Grover took out his reed pipes. "I guess I could try. I know a few Nirvana tunes that can split rocks. But, Percy, are you sure you want to do this?"  
"Please, man," I said. "It would mean a lot. For old times' sake?"  
He whimpered. "As I recall, in the old times we almost died a lot. But okay, here goes nothing."** "Yeah, Seaweed Brain, the old times weren't exactly fairytales." Annabeth agreed dryly.**  
He put his pipes to his lips and played a shrill, lively tune. The boulders trembled. A few more stanzas, and they cracked open, revealing a triangular crevice.  
I peered inside. Steps led down into the darkness. The air smelled of mildew and death.  
**Hades frowned, smell of death? He'd never smelt that before, probably because he'd grown accustomed to any different smells in the underworld.**  
It brought back bad memories of my trip through the Labyrinth last year, but this tunnel felt even more dangerous. It led straight to the land of Hades, and that was almost always a one-way trip.  
I turned to Grover. "Thanks . . . I think."  
"Perrrrcy, is Kronos really going to invade?"  
"I wish I could tell you better, but yeah. He will."  
I thought Grover might chew up his reed pipes in anxiety, but he straightened up and brushed off his T-shirt. I couldn't help thinking how different he looked from fat old Leneus. "I've got to rally the nature spirits, then. Maybe we can help. I'll see if we can find this Morpheus.'"  
"Better tell Juniper you're okay, too."  
His eyes widened. "Juniper! Oh, she's going to kill me!"  
**"Don't cha just love it when girlfriends kill you, cuz? You piss Annabeth off enough." Thalia raised a black eyebrow at Percy.**  
He started to run off, then scrambled back and gave me another hug. "Be careful down there! Come back alive!"  
Once he was gone, Nico and I roused Mrs. O'Leary from her nap.  
When she smelled the tunnel, she got excited and led the way down the steps.  
**Hera scoffed delicately, Mrs. O'Leary must be the only living or dead creature to ever be excited about going to the dark Underworld.**  
It was a pretty tight fit. I hoped she wouldn't get stuck. I couldn't imagine how much Drano we'd need to un-stick a hellhound wedged halfway down a tunnel to the Underworld.  
"Ready?" Nico asked me. "It'll be fine. Don't worry."  
He sounded like he was trying to convince himself.  
I glanced up at the stars, wondering if I would ever see them again.  
**"You're going to kidnap him, aren't you?" Persephone whispered to her husband so no one could hear.  
"Looks like it." Hades replied.**  
Then we plunged into darkness.  
The stairs went on forever-narrow, steep, and slippery. It was completely dark except for the light of my sword. I tried to go slow, but Mrs. O'Leary had other ideas. She bounded ahead, barking happily. The sound echoed through the tunnel like cannon shots, and I figured we would not be catching anybody by surprise once we reached the bottom.  
Nico lagged behind, which I thought was strange.  
"You okay?" I asked him.  
"Fine." What was that expression on his face . . . doubt?  
**"Definitely." Hades whispered.**  
"Just keep moving," he said.  
I didn't have much choice. I followed Mrs. O'Leary into the depths. After another hour, I started to hear the roar of a river.  
We emerged at the base of a cliff, on a plain of black volcanic sand. To our right, the River Styx gushed from the rocks and roared off in a cascade of rapids. To our left, far away in the gloom, fires burned on the ramparts of Erebos, the great black walls of Hades's kingdom.  
I shuddered. I'd first been here when I was twelve, and only Annabeth and Grover's company had given me the courage to keep going. Nico wasn't going to be quite as helpful with the "courage" thing. He looked pale and worried himself.  
**Hades cringed inwardly, he was unwilling to admit, but he did like Percy and wasn't looking forward to all the hate that would be thrown his way once it got revealed he locked him up in a cell**  
Only Mrs. O'Leary acted happy. She ran along the beach, picked up a random human leg bone, and romped back toward me. She dropped the bone at my feet and waited for me to throw it.  
**"Um… okay… ew!" Aphrodite made an ugly face while still looking beautiful.**  
"Um, maybe later, girl." I stared at the dark waters, trying to get up my nerve. "So, Nico . . . how do we do this?"  
"We have to go inside the gates first," he said.  
"But the river's right here."  
**Zeus narrowed his eyes at the four wide eyed teens in front of him.**  
"I have to get something," he said. "It's the only way."  
He marched off without waiting.  
I frowned. Nico hadn't mentioned anything about going inside the gates. But now that we were here, I didn't know what else to do. Reluctantly, I followed him down the beach toward the big black gates.  
Lines of the dead stood outside waiting to get in. It must've been a heavy day for funerals, because even the EZ-DEATH line was backed up.  
"Woof!" Mrs. O'Leary said. Before I could stop her she bounded toward the security checkpoint. Cerberus, the guard dog of Hades, appeared out of the gloom-a three-headed rottweiler so big he made Mrs. O'Leary look like a toy poodle. Cerberus was half transparent, so he's really hard to see until he's close enough to kill you, but he acted like he didn't care about us. He was too busy saying hello to Mrs. O'Leary.  
"Mrs. O'Leary, no!" I shouted at her. "Don't sniff . . . Oh, man."  
**"Well, that's awkward." Ares said before bursting out into a booming laugh.**  
Nico smiled. Then he looked at me and his expression turned all serious again, like he'd remembered something unpleasant. "Come on. They won't give us any trouble in the line. You're with me."  
I didn't like it, but we slipped through the security ghouls and into the Fields of Asphodel. I had to whistle for Mrs. O'Leary three times before she left Cerberus alone and ran after us.  
We hiked over black fields of grass dotted with black poplar trees. If I really died in a few days like the prophecy said, I might end up here forever, but I tried not to think about that.  
Nico trudged ahead, bringing us closer and closer to the palace of Hades.  
"Hey," I said, "we're inside the gates already. Where are we-"  
Mrs. O'Leary growled. A shadow appeared overhead-something dark, cold, and stinking of death. It swooped down and landed in the top of a poplar tree.  
Unfortunately, I recognized her. She had a shriveled face, a horrible blue knit hat, and a crumpled velvet dress. Leathery bat wings sprang from her back. Her feet had sharp talons, and in her brass-clawed hands she held a flaming whip and a paisley handbag.  
**"The Maths teacher…" Sally gasped, remembering the foul woman who taught her son.**  
"Mrs. Dodds," I said.  
**Percy and Grover shuddered causing looks to be thrown their way.  
"7th grade maths teacher who tried to kill me." Percy explained.  
"She sounds like a great teacher." Hermes rolled his eyes.**  
She bared her fangs. "Welcome back, honey."  
Her two sisters-the other Furies-swooped down and settled next to her in the branches of the poplar.  
"You know Alecto?" Nico asked me.  
"If you mean the hag in the middle, yeah," I said. "She was my math teacher."  
Nico nodded, like this didn't surprise him.  
**"Unfortunately nothing really surprises me anymore."**  
He looked up at the Furies and took a deep breath. "I've done what my father asked. Take us to the palace."  
I tensed. "Wait a second, Nico. What do you-"  
"I'm afraid this is my new lead, Percy. My father promised me information about my family, but he wants to see you before we try the river. I'm sorry."  
**"That's not too bad-" Aphrodite was interrupted by Ares who hushed her quiet.**  
"You tricked me?" I was so mad I couldn't think. I lunged at him, but the Furies were fast. Two of them swooped down and plucked me up by the arms. My sword fell out of my hand, and before I knew it, I was dangling sixty feet in the air.  
"Oh, don't struggle, honey," my old math teacher cackled in my ear. "I'd hate to drop you."  
Mrs. O'Leary barked angrily and jumped, trying to reach me, but we were too high.  
"Tell Mrs. O'Leary to behave," Nico warned. He was hovering near me in the clutches of the third Fury. "I don't want her to get hurt, Percy. My father is waiting. He just wants to talk."  
**"Unfortunately, my brother doesn't want to just talk." Demeter grimaced.**  
I wanted to tell Mrs. O'Leary to attack Nico, but it wouldn't have done any good, and Nico was right about one thing: my dog could get hurt if she tried to pick a fight with the Furies.  
I gritted my teeth. "Mrs. O'Leary, down! It's okay, girl."  
She whimpered and turned in circles, looking up at me. "All right, traitor," I growled at Nico. "You've got your prize. Take me to the stupid palace."  
Alecto dropped me like a sack of turnips in the middle of the palace garden.  
It was beautiful  
**"Thanks!" Persephone beamed at Percy.**  
in a creepy way.  
**"No thanks!" Persephone turned away from Percy and faced Nico full on.**  
Skeletal white trees grew from marble basins. Flower beds overflowed with golden plants and gemstones. A pair of thrones, one bone and one silver, sat on the balcony with a view of the Fields of Asphodel. It would've been a nice place to spend a Saturday morning except for the sulfurous smell and the cries of tortured souls in the distance.  
Skeletal warriors guarded the only exit. They wore tattered U.S. Army desert combat fatigues and carried M16s.  
The third Fury deposited Nico next to me. Then all three of them settled on the top of the skeletal throne. I resisted the urge to strangle Nico. They'd only stop me. I'd have to wait for my revenge.  
I stared at the empty thrones, waiting for something to happen. Then the air shimmered. Three figures appeared- Hades and Persephone on their thrones, and an older woman standing between them. They seemed to be in the middle of an argument.  
"-told you he was a bum!" the older woman said.  
**"Let me guess, you're talking about my outstanding brother?" Hestia asked.  
"Who else?" Demeter replied with a question.**  
"Mother!" Persephone replied.  
"We have visitors!" Hades barked. "Please!"  
Hades, one of my least favorite gods, smoothed his black robes, which were covered with the terrified faces of the damned. He had pale skin and the intense eyes of a madman.  
"Percy Jackson," he said with satisfaction. "At last."  
Queen Persephone studied me curiously. I'd seen her once before in the winter, but now in the summer she looked like a totally different goddess. She had lustrous black hair and warm brown eyes. Her dress shimmered with colors. Flower patterns in the fabric changed and bloomed-roses, tulips, honeysuckle.  
**Persephone blushed and smiled at Percy, flattered by the unintended compliments.**  
The woman standing between them was obviously Persephone's mother. She had the same hair and eyes, but looked older and sterner. Her dress was golden, the color of a wheat field. Her hair was woven with dried grasses so it reminded me of a wicker basket. I figured if somebody lit a match next to her, she'd be in serious trouble.  
**"Don't even think about it, Apollo." Demeter said, making the excited god almost deflate in disappointment.**  
"Hmmph," the older woman said. "Demigods. Just what we need."  
Next to me, Nico knelt. I wished I had my sword so I could cut his stupid head off. Unfortunately, Riptide was still out in the fields somewhere.  
**"Thanks for all the death threats, Perce. Really appreciate it." Nico looked up from the book.**  
"Father," Nico said. "I have done as you asked."  
"Took you long enough," Hades grumbled. "Your sister would've done a better job."  
**"I'm sure he's feeling the love right now, Brother." Zeus looked at Hades who looked at Nico who smiled back reassuringly.**  
Nico lowered his head. If I hadn't been so mad at the little creep, I might've felt sorry for him.  
I glared up at the god of the dead. "What do you want, Hades?"  
"To talk, of course." The god twisted his mouth in a cruel smile. "Didn't Nico tell you?"  
"So this whole quest was a lie. Nico brought me down here to get me killed."  
"Oh, no," Hades said. "I'm afraid Nico was quite sincere about wanting to help you. The boy is as honest as he is dense. I simply convinced him to take a small detour and bring you here first."  
"Father," Nico said, "you promised that Percy would not be harmed. You said if I brought him, you would tell me about my past-about my mother."  
**"Well, that makes things a little better." Sally smiled kindly at Nico. **  
Queen Persephone sighed dramatically. "Can we please not talk about that woman in my presence?"  
**"Just like Hera." Thalia muttered into Annabeth's ear, causing the daughter of Athena to snicker in response.**  
"I'm sorry, my dove," Hades said. "I had to promise the boy something."  
The older lady harrumphed. "I warned you, daughter. This scoundrel Hades is no good. You could've married the god of doctors or the god of lawyers, but noooo. You had to eat the pomegranate."  
"Mother-"  
"And get stuck in the Underworld!"  
"Mother, please-"  
"And here it is August, and do you come home like you're supposed to? Do you ever think about your poor lonely mother?"  
"DEMETER!" Hades shouted. "That is enough. You are a guest in my house."  
"Oh, a house is it?" she said. "You call this dump a house? Make my daughter live in this dark, damp-"  
"I told you," Hades said, grinding his teeth, "there's a war in the world above. You and Persephone are better off here with me."  
"Excuse me," I broke in. "But if you're going to kill me, could you just get on with it?"  
**"Just because your blatant conversation skills endearing, please do not take habit of speaking like that to every god you meet."  
"Percy! Manners." Sally looked at her soon expectantly. **  
All three gods looked at me.  
"Well, this one has an attitude," Demeter observed.  
"Indeed," Hades agreed. "I'd love to kill him."  
"Father!" Nico said. "You promised!"  
"Husband, we talked about this," Persephone chided. "You can't go around incinerating every hero. Besides, he's brave. I like that."  
Hades rolled his eyes. "You liked that Orpheus fellow too. Look how well that turned out. Let me kill him, just a little bit."  
**"You can't kill someone 'just a little bit'."**  
"Father, you promised!" Nico said. "You said you only wanted to talk to him. You said if I brought him, you'd explain."  
Hades glowered, smoothing the folds of his robes. "And so I shall. Your mother-what can I tell you? She was a wonderful woman." He glanced uncomfortably at Persephone. "Forgive me, my dear. I mean for a mortal, of course. Her name was Maria di Angelo. She was from Venice, but her father was a diplomat in Washington, D.C. That's where I met her. When you and your sister were young, it was a bad time to be children of Hades. World War II was brewing. A few of my, ah, other children were leading the losing side. I thought it best to put you two out of harm's way."  
**"Please don't be implying what I think you're implying." Nico's eyes widened.  
"What? No, no, that's just… no." Hades shook his head.**  
"That's why you hid us in the Lotus Casino?"  
Hades shrugged. "You didn't age. You didn't realize time was passing. I waited for the right time to bring you out."  
"But what happened to our mother? Why don't I remember her?"  
"Not important," Hades snapped.  
"What? Of course it's important. And you had other children-why were we the only ones who were sent away? And who was the lawyer who got us out?"  
Hades grit his teeth. "You would do well to listen more and talk less, boy. As for the lawyer . . ."  
Hades snapped his fingers. On top of his throne, the Fury Alecto began to change until she was a middle-aged man in a pinstriped suit with a briefcase. She-he-looked strange crouching at Hades's shoulder.  
"You!" Nico said.  
The Fury cackled. "I do lawyers and teachers very well!"  
**"Not really. She was a terrible maths teacher, none of the kids learnt anything from her. Not that they remember her anymore thanks to the mist." Sally commented.**  
Nico was trembling. "But why did you free us from the casino?"  
"You know why," Hades said. "This idiot son of Poseidon cannot be allowed to be the child of the prophecy."  
**"That's not selfish." Ares muttered.  
"What did you say?" Hades thundered.  
"Nothing. I said nothing at all."  
"Sure, whatever you say."**  
I plucked a ruby off the nearest plant and threw it at Hades. It sank harmlessly into his robe. "You should be helping Olympus!" I said. "All the other gods are fighting Typhon, and you're just sitting here-"  
"Waiting things out," Hades finished. "Yes, that's correct. When's the last time Olympus ever helped me, half-blood? When's the last time a child of mine was ever welcomed as a hero? Bah! Why should I rush out and help them? I'll stay here with my forces intact."  
"And when Kronos comes after you?"  
"Let him try. He'll be weakened. And my son here, Nico-" Hades looked at him with distaste. "Well, he's not much now, I'll grant you. It would've been better if Bianca had lived. But give him four more years of training. We can hold out that long, surely. Nico will turn sixteen, as the prophecy says, and then he will make the decision that will save the world. And I will be king of the gods."  
"You're crazy," I said. "Kronos will crush you, right after he finishes pulverizing Olympus."  
Hades spread his hands. "Well, you'll get a chance to find out, half-blood. Because you'll be waiting out this war in my dungeons."  
**The room seemed to have exploded with private conversation and pointed glares. Nico put the book down in his lap and waited it all out patiently as everyone began to calm down.**  
"No!" Nico said. "Father, that wasn't our agreement. And you haven't told me everything!"  
**"Thank you for standing up for him, Nico." Sally told Nico.**  
"I've told you all you need to know," Hades said. "As for our agreement, I spoke with Jackson. I did not harm him. You got your information. If you had wanted a better deal, you should've made me swear on the Styx. Now, go to your room!" He waved his hand, and Nico vanished.  
"That boy needs to eat more," Demeter grumbled. "He's too skinny. He needs more cereal."  
Persephone rolled her eyes. "Mother, enough with the cereal. My lord Hades, are you sure we can't let this little hero go? He's awfully brave."  
**Sally smiled at Persephone who hesitated before sending a confused smile in return.**  
"No, my dear. I've spared his life. That's enough."  
I was sure she was going to stand up for me. The brave, beautiful Persephone was going to get me out of this.  
**Persephone smiled brilliantly at Percy, glad she could do something helpful.**  
She shrugged indifferently. "Fine. What's for breakfast? I'm starving."  
**Persephone inwardly frowned at her careless behaviour and felt a wave of guilt flood her.**  
"Cereal," Demeter said.  
"Mother!" The two women disappeared in a swirl of flowers and wheat.  
"Don't feel too bad, Percy Jackson," Hades said. "My ghosts keep me well informed of Kronos's plans. I can assure you that you had no chance to stop him in time. By tonight, it will be too late for your precious Mount Olympus. The trap will be sprung."  
**"There's a trap!" Zeus boomed. "There's a trap and you don't tell us?"  
"My love, remember this is in the future, there is no point getting worked up over it all now." Hera calmed her husband.**  
"What trap?" I demanded. "If you know about it, do something! At least let me tell the other gods!"  
**"At least someone cares about this war." Zeus murmured.**  
Hades smiled. "You are spirited. I'll give you credit for that. Have fun in my dungeon. We'll check on you again in-oh, fifty or sixty years."**


	10. C9: I Take The Worst Bath Ever

_Hey FanFictioners,_

_It's the 21__st__ of December 2012 here in Australia and so far I haven't died which means I'm pretty happy cause there's a bunch of chocolate in the pantry with my name on it. Too bad I can't eat it until Christmas day. But who cares? I still get to eat it. The school year is over (finally) and so is middle school. Hello, freshman year. Yikes! I'm aiming to be nearly done with As The Twist Unravels by my birthday which is in February, but you guys know I suck so much at updating so that deadline is really unrealistic. _

_Someone reviewed that the sentence thing was weird last chapter and I'm sorry about that, I hope it's better this time, and if it isn't, I need to check the settings on word. I'm also writing an All Human, Percabeth fanfic for PJO at the moment which is probably going to get scraped once I get sick of the plot. So don't count on anything being posted other than this fanfic at the moment. _

_This is a really long AN, isn't it? I'd like to thank cantwaittillfall like usual as well as you guys who fill up my email inbox with your reviews, favourites (favorites?) and follows, it means a bunch and I really appreciate it._

_Bye, bye for now,_

_Pattern of Night xoxo_

* * *

"I'll read." Aphrodite volunteered. "Chapter eight, I Take The Worst Bath Ever." She paused before talking more. "Baths aren't that bad, you just need to bathe regularly."

"Aphrodite, I don't think that's the meaning of the title." Ares told her.

"Whatever, let's just read, 'kay?"**  
My sword reappeared in my pocket.**

"That's really helpful." Poseidon scoffed. **  
Yeah, great timing. Now I could attack the walls all I wanted.**

"It's a great stress release though." Hestia tried to remain optimistic.

"Not really looking for a stress release though." Artemis pointed out.

**My cell had no bars, no windows, not even a door. The skeletal guards shoved me straight through a wall, and it became solid behind me. I wasn't sure if the room was airtight. Probably. Hades's dungeon was meant for dead people, and they don't breathe. So forget fifty or sixty years. I'd be dead in fifty or sixty minutes. Meanwhile, if Hades wasn't lying, some big trap was going to be sprung in New York by the end of the day, and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it.  
I sat on the cold stone floor, feeling miserable.  
I don't remember dozing off. Then again, it must've been about seven in the morning, mortal time, and I'd  
been through a lot.  
I dreamed I was on the porch of Rachel's beach house in St. Thomas. The sun was rising over the  
Caribbean. Dozens of wooded islands dotted the sea, and white sails cut across the water. The smell of  
salt air made me wonder if I would ever see the ocean again.**

"I'm sure you will." Triton said confidently.

"What gave it away? The fact that he's right in front of you and no longer in a cell? Or the fact that he's Poseidon's son?" Ares snarked.

"Both, and the fact that I have faith that Percy will get through this and also the fact that we're only up to chapter eight." Triton replied. **  
Rachel's parents sat at the patio table while a personal chef fixed them omelettes. Mr. Dare was dressed in  
a white linen suit. He was reading The Wall Street Journal. The lady across the table was probably Mrs.  
Dare, though all I could see of her were hot pink fingernails and the cover of Condé Nast Traveller. Why  
she'd be reading about vacations while she was on vacation, I wasn't sure.**

"Some women." Hera rolled her eyes.**  
Rachel stood at the porch railing and sighed. She wore Bermuda shorts and her van Gogh T-shirt.  
(Yeah, Rachel was trying to teach me about art, but don't get too impressed. I only remembered the  
dude's name because he cut his ear off.)**

"You should never get your hopes up about any demi-god's knowledge especially if that demi-god is Perseus Jackson." Athena walked in, sitting down in her normal throne. "What?" She snapped when she noticed everyone looking at her. "Never mind, continue on."  
"Don't you want to read the chapters you've missed out on?"

"Read." Athena said forcefully while keeping a calm, straight face.**  
I wondered if she was thinking about me, and how much it sucked that I wasn't with them on vacation. I  
know that's what I was thinking. Then the scene changed. I was in St. Louis, standing downtown under the Arch. I'd been there before.  
In fact, I'd almost fallen to my death there before.  
Over the city, a thunderstorm boiled—a wall of absolute black with lightning streaking across the sky. A  
few blocks away, swarms of emergency vehicles gathered with their lights flashing. A column of dust rose  
from a mound of rubble, which I realized was a collapsed skyscraper.  
A nearby reporter was yelling into her microphone: "Officials are describing this as a structural failure,  
Dan, though no one seems to know if it is related to the storm conditions."**

"Yes! The war's really starting now!" Ares cheered. Zeus shot the god a look but Ares simply ignored it.**  
Wind whipped her hair. The temperature was dropping rapidly, like ten degrees just since I'd been  
standing there.  
"Thankfully, the building had been abandoned for demolition," she said. "But police have evacuated all  
nearby buildings for fear the collapse might trigger—"  
She faltered as a mighty groan cut through the sky. A blast of lightning hit the centre of the darkness. The  
entire city shook. The air glowed, and every hair on my body stood up. The blast was so powerful I  
knew it could only be one thing: Zeus's master bolt. It should have vaporized its target, but the dark  
cloud only staggered backward. **

"Ooh! And it's a hard one." Ares smiled. "Aw, crap!"

"What now, Ares?" Hera asked the God of War.

Ares made a face. "It's gonna be a hard one, meaning that we're going to have to try harder."

"Obviously," Athena said. "They aren't titans for nothing."

**A smoky fist appeared out of the clouds. It smashed another tower, and the whole thing collapsed like children's blocks.  
The reporter screamed. People ran through the streets. Emergency lights flashed. I saw a streak of silver  
in the sky—a chariot pulled by reindeer, but it wasn't Santa Claus driving. It was Artemis, riding the  
storm, shooting shafts of moonlight into the darkness. A fiery golden comet crossed her path . . . maybe  
her brother Apollo.**

"Thanks for not leaving me out!" Apollo thanked Percy.

"Anytime." Percy replied, confused. **  
One thing was clear: Typhon had made it to the Mississippi River. He was halfway across the U.S.,  
leaving destruction in his wake, and the gods were barely slowing him down.**

"That sounds pleasant." Demeter noted sarcastically. **  
The mountain of darkness loomed above me. A foot the size of Yankee Stadium was about to smash me  
when a voice hissed, "Percy!"  
I lunged out blindly. Before I was fully awake, I had Nico pinned to the floor of the cell with the edge of  
my sword at his throat.**

"Nice reflexes." Hermes told Percy.

"I know better than most." Nico agreed.

"Thanks." Percy replied, ignoring Nico.**  
"Want . . . to . . . rescue," he choked.  
Anger woke me up fast. "Oh, yeah? And why should I trust you?"  
"No . . . choice?" he gagged.  
I wished he hadn't said something logical like that. **

Athena tried her best to keep a straight face, and bite her tongue. Everyone would be pretty mad if she made a smart comment.

**I let him go.  
Nico curled into a ball and made retching sounds while his throat recovered. Finally he got to his feet,  
eyeing my sword warily. His own blade was sheathed. I suppose if he'd wanted to kill me, he could've  
done it while I slept. Still, I didn't trust him.  
"We have to get out of here," he said.  
"Why?" I said. "Does your dad want to talk to me again?"  
He winced. "Percy, I swear on the River Styx, I didn't know what he was planning."  
"You know what your dad is like!"**

"What am I like?" Hades asked Percy, leering down at him from his seat.

"You are, uh, really… deathlike?" Percy stuttered. Hades' heavy laugh bounced around the room, and Nico simply facepalmed while everyone looked at Percy like he was an idiot except for Grover, Annabeth and Thalia who were used to it by now.

Hades shrugged. "I've been called worse although I don't think I've ever been called that particular adjective before."**  
"He tricked me. He promised—" Nico held up his hands. "Look . . . right now, we need to leave. I put  
the guards to sleep, but it won't last."  
I wanted to strangle him again. Unfortunately, he was right. We didn't have time to argue, and I couldn't  
escape on my own. He pointed at the wall. A whole section vanished, revealing a corridor.  
"Come on." Nico led the way.  
I wished I had Annabeth's invisibility hat, but as it turned out, I didn't need it. Every time we came to a skeletonbguard, Nico just pointed at it, and its glowing eyes dimmed. **

"I'm not sure whether I'm proud or annoyed." Hades whispered to Persephone who let out a bright, tinkling laugh.

**Unfortunately, the more Nico did it, the more tired he seemed. We walked through a maze of corridors filled with guards. By the time we  
reached a kitchen staffed by skeletal cooks and servants, I was practically carrying Nico. He managed to  
put all the dead to sleep but nearly passed out himself. I dragged him out of the servants' entrance and  
into the Fields of Asphodel.  
I almost felt relieved until I heard the sound of bronze gongs high in the castle.  
"Alarms," Nico murmured sleepily.  
"What do we do?"  
He yawned then frowned like he was trying to remember.  
"How about . . . run?"**

"That sounds like a good idea." Sally commented. **  
Running with a drowsy child of Hades was more like doing a three-legged race with a life-size rag doll. **

"I think I just got compared to a toy." Nico blinked. Everyone from the future laughed and some gods smiled.

**I lugged him along, holding my sword in front of me. The spirits of the dead made way like the Celestial  
bronze was a blazing fire.  
The sound of gongs rolled across the fields. Ahead loomed the walls of Erebos, but the longer we  
walked, the farther away they seemed. I was about to collapse from exhaustion when I heard a familiar  
"WOOOOOF!"  
Mrs. O'Leary bounded out of nowhere and ran circles around us, ready to play.**

"I like this dog." Sally nodded approvingly.**  
"Good girl.'" I said. "Can you give us a ride to the Styx?"  
The word Styx got her excited. She probably thought I meant sticks. She jumped a few times, chased her  
tail just to teach it who was boss, and then calmed down enough for me to push Nico onto her back.**

"So this is really what it's like inside your brain?" Triton asked Percy.

"Word for word, or, I suppose, thought for thought."

"You should be a comedian." Triton told Percy.

**I climb aboard, and she raced toward the gates. She leaped straight over the EZ-DEATH line, sending  
guards sprawling and causing more alarms to blare. Cerberus barked, but he sounded more excited than  
angry, like: Can I play too?**

Persephone smiled. She liked Cerberus, he was quite the sweetheart.**  
Fortunately, he didn't follow us, and Mrs. O'Leary kept running. She didn't stop until we were far  
upriver and the fires of Erebos had disappeared in the murk. Nico slid off Mrs. O'Leary's back and crumpled in a heap on the black sand.  
I took out a square of ambrosia—part of the emergency god-food I always kept with me. It was a little  
bashed up, but Nico chewed it.  
"Uh," he mumbled. "Better."  
"Your powers drain you too much," I noted.  
He nodded sleepily. "With great power . . . comes great need to take a nap. Wake me up later."**

"And here I thought Nico was going to quote Voltaire." Annabeth said wistfully.

Percy sent Annabeth a confused look.

"Voltaire was a French writer and philosopher in the 1700's." Annabeth explained. "He is credited to have come up with the quote 'With great power comes great responsibility,' although it's also referenced by Stan Lee in the Spiderman comics."

"Riiiiggght." Percy dragged out his reply.**  
"Whoa, zombie dude ." I caught him before he could pass out again. "We're at the river. You need to tell  
me what to do."  
I fed him the last of my ambrosia, which was a little dangerous. The stuff can heal demigods, but it can  
also burn us to ashes if we eat too much. Fortunately, it seemed to do the trick. Nico shook his head a  
few times and struggled to his feet.  
"My father will be coming soon," he said. "We should hurry."  
The River Styx's current swirled with strange objects—broken toys, ripped-up college diplomas, wilted homecoming corsages—all the dreams people had thrown away as they'd passed from life into death.  
Looking at the black water, I could think of about three million places I'd rather swim.**

"You can think of three million?" Triton asked, impressed.

"It's a _slight_ over exaggeration." Percy replied.**  
"So . . . I just jump in?"  
"You have to prepare yourself first," Nico said, "or the river will destroy you. It will burn away your  
body and soul."  
"Sounds fun," I muttered.  
"This is no joke," Nico warned. "There is only one way to stay anchored to your mortal life. You have to**

He glanced behind me and his eyes widened. I turned and found myself face-to-face with a Greek warrior.  
For a second I thought he was Ares, because this guy looked exactly like the god of war—tall and buff,  
with a cruel scarred face and closely shaved black hair. He wore a white tunic and bronze armour. He  
held a plumed war helm under his arm. But his eyes were human—pale green like a shallow sea—and a  
bloody arrow stuck out of his left calf, just above the ankle.  
I stunk at Greek names, but even I knew the greatest warrior of all time, who had died from a wounded

**heel.  
"Achilles," I said.  
The ghost nodded. "I warned the other one not to follow my path. Now I will warn you."  
"Luke? You spoke with Luke?"  
"Do not do this," he said.**

"Just ignore him then." Aphrodite commented.

**"It will make you powerful. But it will also make you weak. Your prowess in**

**combat will be beyond any mortal's, but your weaknesses, your failings will increase as well."  
"You mean I'll have a bad heel?" I said. "Couldn't I just, like, wear something besides sandals? No offense."  
He stared down at his bloody foot. "The heel is only my physical weakness, demigod. My mother, Thetis, held me there when she dipped me in the Styx. What really killed me was my own arrogance. Beware! Turn back!"  
He meant it. I could hear the regret and bitterness in his voice. He was honestly trying to save me from a  
terrible fate.  
Then again, Luke had been here, and he hadn't turned back.  
That's why Luke had been able to host the spirit of Kronos without his body disintegrating. This is how  
he'd prepared himself, and why he seemed impossible to kill. He had bathed in the River Styx and taken  
on the powers of the greatest mortal hero, Achilles. He was invincible.**

"This makes this war sound so much funner." Artemis muttered sarcastically. **  
"I have to," I said. "Otherwise I don't stand a chance."  
Achilles lowered his head. "Let the gods witness I tried. Hero, if you must do this, concentrate on your  
mortal point. Imagine one spot of your body that will remain vulnerable. This is the point where your soul  
will anchor your body to the world. It will be your greatest weakness, but also your only hope. No man  
may be completely invulnerable. Lose sight of what keeps you mortal, and the River Styx will burn you to ashes. You will cease to exist."  
"I don't suppose you could tell me Luke's mortal point?"**

"Nice try, but I think not." Thalia scoffed. **  
He scowled. "Prepare yourself, foolish boy. Whether you survive this or not, you have sealed your doom!"  
With that happy thought, he vanished.  
"Percy," Nico said, "maybe he's right."  
"This was your idea."  
"I know, but now that we're here—"  
"Just wait on the shore. If anything happens to me . . . Well, maybe Hades will get his wish, and you'll be  
the child of the prophecy after all."  
He didn't look pleased about that, but I didn't care.**

"Yeah, I don't like the sound of that at all." Nico shuddered. **  
Before I could change my mind, I concentrated on the small of my back—a tiny point just opposite my  
navel. It was well defended when I wore my armour. It would be hard to hit by accident, and few enemies  
would aim for it on purpose.**

"Good choice." Athena nodded approvingly, something that left everyone in a mini state of shock.

"I agree." Zeus said. "You thought it through well."**  
No place was perfect, but this seemed right to me, and a lot more dignified than, like, my armpit or something.**

"It'd be hilarious if Luke's was in his armpit." Apollo cracked a smile. Everyone had a little chuckle, something which relieved the room temporarily of the tension that had been growing since the beginning of the chapter.**  
I pictured a string, a bungee cord connecting me to the world from the small of my back.  
And I stepped into the river.**

"This shouldn't be too bad. Your dad is Poseidon after all." Ares shrugged.

"I wouldn't be too sure of that, Ares." Poseidon warned him.**  
Imagine jumping into a pit of boiling acid. **

Sally cringed at the thought.

**Now multiply that pain times fifty. **

"Yeah, that sounds pretty awful." Ares stated.

**You still won't be close to understanding what it felt like to swim in the Styx.**

"Talk about the understatement of the century." Aphrodite said to Ares in reference to his previous comment.

**I planned to walk in slow and courageous like a real hero.**

"Yeah, that very nearly never works. Guys like Homer, the poet not the Simpsons character, never had it right." Apollo said.

**As soon as the water touched my legs, my muscles turned to jelly and I fell face-first into the current.  
I submerged completely. For the first time in my life, I couldn't breathe underwater. I finally understood  
the panic of drowning.**

"The fact that you've never drowned before really factors to the panic you were suffering." Athena noted thoughtfully.

**Every nerve in my body burned. I was dissolving in the water. I saw faces—Rachel, Grover, Tyson, my mother—but they faded as soon as they appeared.**

Sally frowned, her nerves taking its toll on her.**  
"Percy," my mom said. "I give you my blessing."  
"Be safe, brother!" Tyson pleaded.  
"Enchiladas!" Grover said. I wasn't sure where that came from, but it didn't seem to help much.**

It was something everyone in the room would typically laugh at, but the tension was overpowering the humour of the book.**  
I was losing the fight. The pain was too much. My hands and feet were melting into the water, my soul  
was being ripped from my body. I couldn't remember who I was. The pain of Kronos's scythe had been  
nothing compared to this.**

Zeus frowned, _that_ is an unbearable pain.**  
The cord, a familiar voice said. Remember your lifeline, dummy!**

"Thalia?"

Thalia shook her head at the suggestion that it was her.**  
Suddenly there was a tug in my lower back. The current pulled at me, but it wasn't carrying me away  
anymore. I imagined the string in my back keeping me tied to the shore.  
"Hold on, Seaweed Brain." It was Annabeth's voice, much clearer now. "You're not getting away from  
me that easily."  
The cord strengthened.**

Athena studied her daughter, who was beaming brightly at her boyfriend. It was now clearly obvious that Annabeth meant a lot to Percy, but he was still Poseidon's son, and Athena knew Poseidon better than nearly everyone.**  
I could see Annabeth now—standing barefoot above me on the canoe lake pier. I'd fallen out of my  
canoe. That was it.**

"Nice try fooling yourself." Artemis snorted.

**She was reaching out her hand to haul me up, and she was trying not to laugh. She wore her orange camp T-shirt and jeans. Her hair was tucked up in her Yankees cap, which was strange  
because that should have made her invisible.**

"That is rather strange." Annabeth agreed, taking Percy's hand in her's. **  
"You are such an idiot sometimes." She smiled. "Come on. Take my hand."  
Memories came flooding back to me—sharper and more colourful. I stopped dissolving. My name was  
Percy Jackson. I reached up and took Annabeth's hand.  
Suddenly I burst out of the river. I collapsed on the sand, and Nico scrambled back in surprise.  
"Are you okay?" he stammered. "Your skin. Oh, gods. You're hurt!"**

"You sound like a girl." Grover told Nico.

"Like you can talk." Nico snorted, teasing Grover right back. The satyr's ears went a bright tomato red.**  
My arms were bright red. I felt like every inch of my body had been broiled over a slow flame.  
I looked around for Annabeth, though I knew she wasn't here. It had seemed so real.  
"I'm fine . . . I think." The colour of my skin turned back to normal. The pain subsided. Mrs. O'Leary  
came up and sniffed me with concern. Apparently I smelled really interesting.  
"Do you feel stronger?" Nico asked.  
Before I could decide what I felt, a voice boomed, "THERE!"  
An army of the dead marched toward us. A hundred skeletal Roman legionnaires led the way with  
shields and spears. Behind them came an equal number of British redcoats with bayonets fixed. In the  
middle of the host, Hades himself rode a black-and-gold chariot pulled by nightmare horses, their eyes  
and manes smouldering with fire.  
"You will not escape me this time, Percy Jackson!" Hades bellowed. "Destroy him!"**

Everyone laughed at this, even though it wasn't particularly funny. That river scene was pretty intense.**  
"Father, no!" Nico shouted, but it was too late. The front line of Roman zombies lowered their spears  
and advanced.  
Mrs. O'Leary growled and got ready to pounce. Maybe that's what set me off. I didn't want them  
hurting my dog. Plus, I was tired of Hades being a big bully. If I was going to die, I might as well go  
down fighting.  
I yelled, and the River Styx exploded. **

"That would be sick." Triton smiled at the thought of exploding the River Styx while Hades was muttering about annoying nephews and something about Poseidon keeping it in his pants.

**A black tidal wave smashed into the legionnaires. Spears and shields flew everywhere. Roman zombies began to dissolve, smoke coming off their bronze helmets.  
The redcoats lowered their bayonets, but I didn't wait for them. I charged.  
It was the stupidest thing I've ever done. **

"And that's saying something." Grover chimed in.

"Thanks, mate."

**A hundred muskets fired at me, point blank. All of them missed. I crashed into their line and started hacking with Riptide. Bayonets jabbed. Swords slashed. Guns reloaded and fired. Nothing touched me.**

"That sounds like a scene from a cliché action movie." Sally smiled.

"Imagine how surprised you must have been." Persephone told her husband.**  
I whirled through the ranks, slashing redcoats to dust, one after the other. My mind went on autopilot:  
stab, dodge, cut, deflect, roll . Riptide was no longer a sword. It was an arc of pure destruction.**

"And that sounds like a line from a cliché action movie." Thalia echoed Sally.**  
I broke through the enemy line and leaped into the black chariot. Hades raised his staff. A bolt of dark  
energy shot toward me, but I deflected it off my blade and slammed into him. The god and I both  
tumbled out of the chariot.  
The next thing I knew, my knee was planted on Hades's chest. I was holding the collar of his royal robes  
in one fist, and the tip of my sword was poised right over his face.**

Zeus whistled. He suddenly liked the River Styx a whole lot more. It gave the war effort more hope than before.**  
Silence. The army did nothing to defend their master. I glanced back and realized why. There was  
nothing left of them but weapons in the sand and piles of smoking, empty uniforms. I had destroyed them all.**

"Sick." Triton grinned.

Poseidon smiled at Percy. "Impressive."**  
Hades swallowed. "Now, Jackson, listen here. . . ."  
He was immortal. There was no way I could kill him, but gods can be wounded. I knew that firsthand, and I figured a sword in the face wouldn't feel too good.**

"I wouldn't know." Zeus thought aloud. "Probably."**  
"Just because I'm a nice person," I snarled, "I'll let you go. But first, tell me about that trap!"  
Hades melted into nothing, leaving me holding empty black robes.**

"Thanks a lot." Zeus scoffed.

"You're very welcome." Hades replied sarcastically. **  
I cursed and got to my feet, breathing heavily. Now that the danger was over, I realized how tired I was.  
Every muscle in my body ached. I looked down at my clothes. They were slashed to pieces and full of  
bullet holes, but I was fine. Not a mark on me.  
Nico's mouth hung open. "You just . . . with a sword . . . you just—"  
"I think the river thing worked," I said.**

"No shit, Sherlock." Apollo snorted.

Hera cleared her throat. "Language." She said sternly.**  
"Oh gee," he said sarcastically. "You think?"  
Mrs. O'Leary barked happily and wagged her tail. She bounded around, sniffing empty uniforms and  
hunting for bones. I lifted Hades's robe. I could still see the tormented faces shimmering in the fabric.  
I walked to the edge of the river. "Be free."  
I dropped the robe in the water and watched as it swirled away, dissolving in the current.**

**"Go back to your father," I told Nico. "Tell him he owes me for letting him go. Find out what's going to  
happen to Mount Olympus and convince him to help."**

"Like that'll work." Thalia rolled her eyes.**  
Nico stared at me. "I . . . I can't. He'll hate me now. I mean . . . even more."**

Hades and Nico locked eyes and smiled at one another in reaffirmation of their more positive relationship before paying attention to the book.**  
"You have to," I said. "You owe me too."  
His ears turned red. "Percy, I told you I was sorry. Please . . . let me come with you. I want to fight."**

"Sheesh, I sound desperate."

"You are desperate." Percy replied.

Nico playfully shoved Percy who gladly shoved Nico, a bit more strongly, in return.

"Boys, no catfights." Thalia scorned them.**  
"You'll be more help down here."  
"You mean you don't trust me anymore," he said miserably.  
I didn't answer. I didn't know what I meant. I was too stunned by what I'd just done in battle to think clearly.  
"Just go back to your father," I said, trying not to sound too harsh. "Work on him. You're the only  
person who might be able to get him to listen."  
"That's a depressing thought." Nico sighed. **

"That's a very depressing thought." Poseidon teased his brother.

**"All right. I'll do my best. Besides, he's still hiding something from me about my mom. Maybe I can find out what."  
"Good luck. Now Mrs. O'Leary and I have to go."  
"Where?" Nico said.  
I looked at the cave entrance and thought about the long climb back to the world of the living. "To get  
this war started. It's time I found Luke."  
**"I'm so excited!" Ares shouted.

Silence encompassed the room.

"Good to know." Athena said cautiously. "I'll read next." She volunteered. "Alright, chapter nine, Two Snakes Save My Life."

* * *

_So, what did you think of that chapter? Review, favourite (favorite) and follow._


	11. C10: Two Snakes Save My Life

_Hey FanFictioners,_

_I have no idea why I always start the chapters with that particular greeting. It's really weird. Anyway, I'd like to take a short moment to fangirl about the Les Mis soundtrack because I am simply overjoyed. I love musicals and this really, really looks spectacular. Thanks to cantwaittillfall, and everyone's reviews, follows and favourites._

_-Pattern of Night xoxo_

_Reply to Reviews: (I haven't done this in what's felt like a while)_

_Kat Callan- Thanks for your review! Yeah, I messed it up, whoops, but I did catch on earlier and I worked into the story. I accidently did 'My Cookies Get Scorched' before 'I Drive My Dog Into A Tree' but I corrected it (kinda) and made it that the characters made a mistake. But it is in there and I really am sorry about the confusion. I might add an author's note at the beginning of the fanfic so it all makes sense._

_Like a boss (Guest)- See the above response. Thanks for your review though._

Disclaimer: Yeah, I don't own the Percy Jackson series or any of its affiliates and never will which I'm not sad about cause I'd ruin the Heroes of Olympus series if they made me write it. Leave it all to Rick Riordan.

* * *

"Alright, chapter nine, Two Snakes Save My Life."

Aphrodite shuddered. "I don't like Snakes, they bite."

"Only some bite." Artemis corrected the Love Goddess.

**I love New York. **

"I love New York too." Apollo agreed. "You know who also loves New York? Frank Sinatra."

"If you start singing 'New York, New York' I will get so mad that you'll think I'm a crazy lady." Artemis threatened.

"I already think you're a crazy lady." Apollo muttered.

"What was that?" Artemis snapped, hearing perfectly well what Apollo just said.

"Nothing… nothing…."

**You can pop out of the Underworld in Central Park, hail a taxi, head down Fifth Avenue with a giant hellhound loping along behind you, and nobody even looks at you funny.**

"Please tell me that was sarcasm." Athena said.

"80% of this book is sarcasm." Thalia replied.

Percy defended himself. "Mom used to always get mad at me for being sarcastic so I just think sarcastic thoughts."

"Don't drag me into this." Sally told her son. "They're your thoughts, not mine."

**Of course, the Mist helped. People probably couldn't see Mrs. O'Leary, or maybe they thought she was a large, loud, very friendly truck.**

"People would think Mrs. O'Leary is a truck when you're hailing a taxi?" Hestia tilted her head sideways.

"Yeah… I don't get it either." Percy frowned.

**I took the risk of using my mom's cell phone to call Annabeth for a second time.**

"You rely on Annabeth a lot, don't you?" Triton raised an eyebrow at his brother.

"Behind every great man, there is a brilliant woman." Zeus told his nephew wisely, looking at his wife. Hera flushed a pretty pink and kissed her husband on the cheek. While this was happening, Thalia was looking at Annabeth forcefully, trying not to see her father go all lovey-dovey with his wife.

**I'd called her once from the tunnel but only reached her voice mail. I'd gotten surprisingly good reception, seeing as I was at the mythological center of the world and all, but I didn't want to see what my mom's roaming charges were going to be.**

Sally couldn't help but groan. Bills, bills and more bills.

**This time, Annabeth picked up.**

**"Hey," I said. "You get my message?"**

**"Percy, where have you been? Your message said almost nothing! We've been worried sick!"**

**"I'll fill you in later," I said, though how I was going to do that I had no idea.**

"I'll help!" Aphrodite volunteered, winking at Percy causing him and Annabeth to blush.

"There's no need to do that, but thank you very much." Annabeth thanked the goddess. Aphrodite had participated in their relationship enough for a good century, she didn't need to do anything else.

**"Where are you?"**

**"We're on our way like you asked, almost to the Queens-Midtown Tunnel."**

**"But, Percy, what are you planning? We've left the camp virtually undefended, and there's no way the gods-"**

**"Trust me," I said. "I'll see you there."**

**I hung up. My hands were trembling. I wasn't sure if it was a leftover reaction from my dip in the Styx, or anticipation of what I was about to do. **

"Good Gods, what are you going to do now?" Triton complained.

"I know, right? He's like my brother, but almost worst." Artemis agreed. "_Almost."_

**If this didn't work, being invulnerable wasn't going to save me from getting blasted to bits.**

"That sounds… comforting." Hestia said sarcastically as she made face.

**It was late afternoon when the taxi dropped me at the Empire State Building. Mrs. O'Leary bounded up and down Fifth Avenue, licking cabs and sniffing hot dog carts.**

"Percy?" Sally asked her son.

"Yeah, mom?"

"What's going to happen to Mrs. O'Leary after all this? Because we don't have enough room to look after a hellhound."

"Not too sure." Percy shrugged.

"She could stay at camp." Grover suggested.

Sally nodded before turning to face Athena who was patiently waiting for the reading to continue.

**Nobody seemed to notice her, although people did swerve away and look confused when she came close.**

**I whistled for her to heel as three white vans pulled up to the curb.**

**They said Delphi Strawberry Service, which was the cover name for Camp Half-Blood. I'd never seen all three vans in the same place at once, though I knew they shuttled our fresh produce into the city.**

"Wait! You actually grow strawberries at Camp Half-Blood?" Hermes asked.

"Uh, yeah?" Grover replied.

"Are they nice?"

"They're okay." Thalia shrugged. "Pretty juicy."

**The first van was driven by Argus, our many-eyed security chief. The other two were driven by harpies, who are basically demonic human/chicken hybrids with bad attitudes.**

**We used the harpies mostly for cleaning the camp, but they did pretty well in midtown traffic too.**

**The doors slid open. A bunch of campers climbed out, some of them looking a little green from the long drive.**

**I was glad so many had come: Pollux, Silena Beauregard, the Stoll brothers, Michael Yew, Jake Mason, Katie Gardner, and Annabeth, along with most of their siblings. Chiron came out of the van last. His horse half was compacted into his magic wheelchair, so he used the handicap lift.**

"How does that wheelchair work?" Annabeth asked.

"Magic." Athena replied simply.

**The Ares cabin wasn't here, but I tried not to get too angry about that.**

Athena snickered quietly, it was in his genes to feel too passionately and abrasively, of course he was going to get angry about that.

**Clarisse was a stubborn idiot.**

"Hey!" Ares shouted. "She is not, you annoying little punk!"

Zeus rolled his eyes. "Ares, control yourself."

Ares rolled his eyes in return.

**End of story.**

**I did a head count: forty campers in all.**

"That's a lot, but barely anything at all." Demeter noted.

"Exactly, it's a lot of demigods in the one area, but is it enough to fight Kronos? No way." Persephone agreed with her mother.

"They'd be more if Ares's cabin stopped being so childish." Hades pointed out.

"Like you can talk." Ares snorted.

"Quiet, Ares!" Zeus thundered. "Can we please continue on with the book? This is in the future, we can change whatever is happening."

**Not many to fight a war, but it was still the largest group of half-bloods I'd ever seen gathered in one place outside camp.**

**Everyone looked nervous, and I understood why. We were probably sending out so much demigod aura that every monster in the northeastern United States knew we were here.**

"And that's a lot of monsters." Thalia commented.

**As I looked at their faces-all these campers I'd known for so many summers-a nagging voice whispered in my mind: One of them is a spy.**

"So really, there are only 39 fighters. This is going from bad to worse." Hermes groaned.

**But I couldn't dwell on that. They were my friends. I needed them.**

**Then I remembered Kronos's evil smile. You can't count on friends. They will always let you down.**

"Don't let him get to you, Perseus." Hades told Percy.

"But let's not forget how hard it is _not_ to let him get to you." Zeus reminded his brother, coming to his nephew's defence.

**Annabeth came up to me. She was dressed in black camouflage with her Celestial bronze knife strapped to her arm and her laptop bag slung over her shoulder-ready for stabbing or surfing the Internet, whichever came first.**

"Stabbing." Ares answered automatically.

**She frowned. "What is it?"**

**"What's what?" I asked.**

**"You're looking at me funny."**

"Ooh..." Aphrodite looked at Percabeth, her eyelashes fluttering suggestively.

**I realized I was thinking about my strange vision of Annabeth pulling me out of the Styx River. "It's, uh, nothing."**

**I turned to the rest of the group. "Thanks for coming, everybody. Chiron, after you."**

**My old mentor shook his head. "I came to wish you luck, my boy. But I make it a point never to visit Olympus unless I am summoned."**

**"But you're our leader."**

"Nu-uh, you are!" Apollo corrected cheerfully.

**He smiled. "I am your trainer, your teacher. That is not the same as being your leader. I will go gather what allies I can. It may not be too late to convince my brother centaurs to help. Meanwhile, you called the campers here, Percy. You are the leader."**

Poseidon, Triton and Sally beamed with pride, giant smiles on their faces as they grinned at Percy.

**I wanted to protest, but everybody was looking at me expectantly, even Annabeth.**

**I took a deep breath. "Okay, like I told Annabeth on the phone, something bad is going to happen by tonight. Some kind of trap. We've got to get an audience with Zeus and convince him to defend the city. Remember, we can't take no for an answer."**

"Where are you?" Zeus asked his daughter.

"With the other huntresses, I'll appear soon." Thalia replied.

**I asked Argus to watch Mrs. O'Leary, which neither of them looked happy about.**

**Chiron shook my hand. "You'll do well, Percy. Just remember your strengths and beware your weaknesses."**

"This is getting very serious." Ares pointed out.

"It's a war, Ares. Of course it's getting serious." Hermes rolled his eyes.

**It sounded eerily close to what Achilles had told me. Then I remembered Chiron had taught Achilles. That didn't exactly reassure me, but I nodded and tried to give him a confident smile.**

"Tried being the key word, you looked like you were going to have a panic attack." Annabeth chuckled at the memory.

**"Let's go," I told the campers.**

**A security guard was sitting behind the desk in the lobby, reading a big black book with a flower on the cover. He glanced up when we all filed in with our weapons and armor clanking. "School group? We're about to close up."**

**"No," I said. "Six-hundredth floor."**

**He checked us out. His eyes were pale blue and his head was completely bald. I couldn't tell if he was human or not, but he seemed to notice our weapons, so I guess he wasn't fooled by the Mist.**

**"There is no six-hundredth floor, kid." He said it like it was a required line he didn't believe. "Move along."**

**I leaned across the desk. "Forty demigods attract an awful lot of monsters. You really want us hanging out in your lobby?"**

**He thought about that. Then he hit a buzzer and the security gate swung open. "Make it quick."**

"He needed to think about it?" Hestia exclaimed.

**"You don't want us going through the metal detectors," I added.**

**"Um, no," he agreed. "Elevator on the right. I guess you know the way."**

**I tossed him a golden drachma and we marched on through.**

**We decided it would take two trips to get everybody up in the elevator. I went with the first group. Different elevator music was playing since my last visit – that old disco song "Stayin' Alive."**

"Courtesy of moi!" Apollo bowed.

Everyone laughed.

"Imagine how awkward that must have been. Preparing for a war and then hearing elevator music." Hermes scoffed.

**A terrifying image flashed through my mind of Apollo in bell-bottom pants and a slinky silk shirt.**

"Key word; terrifying." Artemis eyed her brother.

**I was glad when the elevator doors finally dinged open. In front of us, a path of floating stones led through the clouds up to Mount Olympus, hovering six thousand feet over Manhattan. I'd seen Olympus several times, but it still took my breath away. The mansions glittered gold and white against the sides of the mountain.**

**Gardens bloomed on a hundred terraces. Scented smoke rose from braziers that lined the winding streets. And right at the top of the snow-capped crest rose the main palace of the gods. It looked as majestic as ever, but something seemed wrong.**

**Then I realized the mountain was silent-no music, no voices, no laughter.**

"It's just like last time." Hera said softly.

**Annabeth studied me. "You look… different," she decided. "Where exactly did you go?"**

**The elevator doors opened again, and the second group of half-bloods joined us.**

**"Tell you later," I said. "Come on."**

"You can't put it off forever." Demeter warned Percy.

"She finds out, in this chapter, I think." The demigod replied.

**We made our way across the sky bridge into the streets of Olympus.**

**The shops were closed. The parks were empty. A couple of Muses sat on a bench strumming flaming lyres, but their hearts didn't seem to be in it. A lone Cyclops swept the street with an uprooted oak tree. A minor godling spotted us from a balcony and ducked inside, closing his shutters.**

It was something the gods would have found quite funny if the book wasn't nonfiction.

**We passed under a big marble archway with statues of Zeus and Hera on either side.**

**Annabeth made a face at the queen of the gods.**

**"Hate her," she muttered.**

"I can assure you the feeling is very mutual." Hera sniffed.

**"Has she been cursing you or something?" I asked. Last year Annabeth had gotten on Hera's bad side, but Annabeth hadn't really talked about it since.**

**"Just little stuff so far," she said. "Her sacred animal is the cow, right?"**

_Because she is one,_ Annabeth thought slyly.

**"Right."**

**"So she sends cows after me."**

**I tried not to smile. "Cows? In San Francisco?"**

**"Oh, yeah. Usually I don't see them, but the cows leave me little presents all over the place-in our backyard, on the sidewalk, in the school hallways. I have to be careful where I step."**

"Ew!" Aphrodite squealed. "That's revolting."

"Tell me about." Annabeth muttered.

**"Look!" Pollux cried, pointing toward the horizon. "What is that?"**

**We all froze. Blue lights were streaking across the evening sky toward Olympus like tiny comets.**

**They seemed to be coming from all over the city, heading straight toward the mountain. As they got close, they fizzled out. We watched them for several minutes and they didn't seem to do any damage, but still it was strange.**

"What's going on?" Triton asked, befuddled.

**"Like infrared scopes," Michael Yew muttered. "We're being targeted."**

**"Let's get to the palace," I said.**

**No one was guarding the hall of the gods. The gold-and-silver doors stood wide open. Our footsteps echoed as we walked into the throne room.**

**Of course, "room" doesn't really cover it. The place was the size of Madison Square Garden. High above, the blue ceiling glittered with constellations. Twelve giant empty thrones stood in a U around a hearth.**

"A hearth!" Hestia beamed.

**In one corner, a house-size globe of water hovered in the air, and inside swam my old friend the Ophiotaurus, half-cow, half-serpent.**

"Sounds like Hera's kind of friend." Poseidon teased his sister, who smiled back sarcastically.

**"Moooo!" he said happily, turning in a circle.**

**Despite all the serious stuff going on, I had to smile. Two years ago we'd spent a lot of time trying to save the Ophiotaurus from the Titans, and I'd gotten kind of fond of him.**

**He seemed to like me too, even though I'd originally thought he was a girl and named him Bessie.**

"Bessie? Really, Percy? Bessie?" Sally scoffed.

"That's what cows are named, isn't it?" Percy's eyes widened.

"Not all of them." Hera corrected Percy, always ready to defend her sacred animal.

**"Hey, man," I said. "They treating you okay?"**

**"Mooo," Bessie answered.**

"That better be a yes." Hera said, a threat lacing her voice.

**We walked toward the thrones, and a woman's voice said, "Hello again, Percy Jackson. You and your friends are welcome."**

"Me!" Hestia smiled happily, excited about being mentioned in the book again.

Athena's eyes narrowed as she paused. Her mind was turning like clockwork as she put together the title. Hestia is the Last Olympian, she realised.

**Hestia stood by the hearth, poking the flames with a stick. She wore the same kind of simple brown dress as she had before, but she was a grown woman now.**

**I bowed. "Lady Hestia."**

"Aw, aren't you sweet?" Hestia cooed.

**My friends followed my example.**

"And influential." She added.

**Hestia regarded me with her red glowing eyes. "I see you went through with your plan. You bear the curse of Achilles."**

**The other campers started muttering among themselves: What did she say? What about Achilles?**

"Awkward." Apollo sang.

**"You must be careful," Hestia warned me. "You gained much on your journey. But you are still blind to the most important truth. Perhaps a glimpse is in order."**

**Annabeth nudged me. "Um… what is she talking about?"**

"You're totally in for it now, Seaweed Brain." Thalia smirked.

"Correction; I _was_ in for it."

**I stared into Hestia's eyes, and an image rushed into my mind:**

**I saw a dark alley between red brick warehouses. A sign above one of the doors read RICHMOND IRONWORKS.**

**Two half-bloods crouched in the shadows-a boy about fourteen and a girl about twelve. I realized with a start that the boy was Luke. The girl was Thalia, daughter of Zeus.**

Thalia's eyes widened and she gave a sharp gasp when she realised what was being read out.

"Is everything okay?" Sally asked her son's cousin cautiously.

"Nothing, it's fine. Continue on." Thalia waved off Sally's question.

**I was seeing a scene from back in the days when they were on the run, before Grover found them.**

**Luke carried a bronze knife. Thalia had her spear and shield of terror, Aegis. Luke and Thalia both looked hungry and lean, with wild animal eyes, like they were used to being attacked.**

**"Are you sure?" Thalia asked.**

**Luke nodded. "Something down here. I sense it."**

**A rumble echoed from the alley, like someone had banged on a sheet of metal. The half-bloods crept forward.**

**Old crates were stacked on a loading dock. Thalia and Luke approached with their weapons ready. A curtain of corrugated tin quivered as if something were behind it.**

**Thalia glanced at Luke. He counted silently: One, two, three! He ripped away the tin, and a little girl flew at him with a hammer.**

"Sorry, what?" Artemis asked.

"A little girl with a hammer, that's what it says."

Annabeth flushed a scarlet red and averted her eyes away from the gods.

**"Whoa!" Luke said.**

**The girl had tangled blond hair and was wearing flannel pajamas.**

"Yeah, that's me." Annabeth nodded her head casually.

**She couldn't have been more than seven, but she would've brained Luke if he hadn't been so fast.**

"I wasn't that good!" Annabeth shook her head.

**He grabbed her wrist, and the hammer skittered across the cement.**

**The little girl fought and kicked. "No more monsters! Go away!"**

**"It's okay!" Luke struggled to hold her. "Thalia, put your shield up. You're scaring her."**

Hermes felt a bittersweet taste growing in his mouth. It was nice to hear of his son back when he was a nice boy, but it hurt knowing that he wasn't that way anymore.

**Thalia tapped Aegis, and it shrank into a silver bracelet. "Hey, it's all right," she said. "We're not going to hurt you. I'm Thalia. This is Luke."**

**"Monsters!"**

**"No," Luke promised. "But we know all about monsters. We fight them too."**

**Slowly, the girl stopped kicking. She studied Luke and Thalia with large intelligent gray eyes.**

**"You're like me?" she said suspiciously.**

**"Yeah," Luke said. "We're… well, it's hard to explain, but we're monster fighters.**

Athena smiled softly. It was nice to know that Annabeth had some nice, mature friends to look out for her and understand her when no one else did.

**Where's your family?"**

**"My family hates me," the girl said. "They don't want me. I ran away."**

Annabeth placed her head in her hands out of embarrassment. "Gods, I was such a drama queen."

"Hey, you were younger then. You didn't understand where your dad and stepmom were coming from." Percy rubbed his hand on her back for comfort.

**Thalia and Luke locked eyes. I knew they both related to what she was saying.**

**"What's your name, kiddo?" Thalia asked.**

**"Annabeth."**

**Luke smiled. "Nice name. I tell you what, Annabeth - you're pretty fierce. We could use a fighter like you."**

**Annabeth's eyes widened. "You could?"**

_She would be an excellent huntress,_ Artemis thought._ If only she wasn't with Percy. Although, out of all the boys she could be dating, Percy was the best._

**"Oh, yeah." Luke turned his knife and offered her the handle. "How'd you like a real monster-slaying weapon? This is Celestial bronze. Works a lot better than a hammer."**

"A lot better." Annabeth agreed with Luke, lifting her head out of her hands.

**Maybe under most circumstances, offering a seven-year-old kid a knife would not be a good idea, but when you're a half-blood, regular rules kind of go out the window.**

"No matter how many rules you set we always find a way to break them." Percy stated proudly.

"Ain't that the truth." Grover muttered, thinking back to all the times they had broken rules at Camp Halfblood and out of it.

**Annabeth gripped the hilt.**

**"Knives are only for the bravest and quickest fighters," Luke explained. "They don't have the reach or power of a sword, but they're easy to conceal and they can find weak spots in your enemy's armor. It takes a clever warrior to use a knife. I have a feeling you're pretty clever."**

**Annabeth stared at him with adoration. "I am!"**

"Do I hear the beginning of a crush?" Aphrodite eyed Annabeth.

"Kinda." Annabeth bit her lip.

**Thalia grinned. "We'd better get going, Annabeth. We have a safe house on the James River. We'll get you some clothes and food."**

**"You're… you're not going to take me back to my family?" she said. "Promise?"**

**Luke put his hand on her shoulder. "You're part of our family now. And I promise I won't let anything hurt you. I'm not going to fail you like our families did us. Deal?"**

"That's so sweet." Demeter cooed.

"It really is." Persephone agreed.

**"Deal!" Annabeth said happily.**

**"Now, come on," Thalia said. "We can't stay put for long!"**

**The scene shifted. The three demigods were running through the woods. It must've been several days later, maybe even weeks. All of them looked beat up, like they'd seen some battles.**

"We had." Thalia shared a look with Annabeth.

**Annabeth was wearing new clothes – jeans and an oversize army jacket.**

**"Just a little farther!" Luke promised. Annabeth stumbled, and he took her hand. Thalia brought up the rear, brandishing her shield like she was driving back whatever pursued them.**

**She was limping on her left leg.**

Artemis's eyes widened. Is this when Thalia was turned into a tree?

**They scrambled to a ridge and looked down the other side at a white Colonial house – May Castellan's place.**

Nope. Artemis relaxed.

Hermes felt a sinking feeling as he realised what was happening.

**"All right," Luke said, breathing hard. "I'll just sneak in and grab some food and medicine. Wait here."**

**"Luke, are you sure?" Thalia asked. "You swore you'd never come back here. If she catches you-"**

**"We don't have a choice!" he growled. "They burned our nearest safe house. And you've got to treat that leg wound."**

"Who burned it?" Hera asked but received no reply.

**"This is your house?" Annabeth said with amazement.**

**"It was my house," Luke muttered. "Believe me, if it wasn't an emergency-"**

**"Is your mom really horrible?" Annabeth asked. "Can we see her?"**

**"No!" Luke snapped.**

**Annabeth shrank away from him as though his anger surprised her.**

**"I… I'm sorry," he said. "Just wait here. I promise everything will be okay. Nothing's going to hurt you. I'll be back-"**

**A brilliant golden flash illuminated the woods.**

**The demigods winced, and a man's voice boomed: "You should not have come home."**

"Hermes," Apollo sighed. "What happened?"

"Just listen." Hermes replied tightly.

**The vision shut off.**

**My knees buckled, but Annabeth grabbed me. "Percy! What happened?"**

**"Did… did you see that?" I asked.**

"Nope." Hestia popped, grinning.

**"See what?"**

**I glanced at Hestia, but the goddess's face was expressionless. I remembered something she'd told me in the woods: ****_If you are to understand your enemy Luke, you must understand his family_****. But why had she shown me those scenes?**

**"How long was I out?" I muttered.**

"Like a second." Hestia guessed.

**Annabeth knit her eyebrows. "Percy, you weren't out at all. You just looked at Hestia for like one second and collapsed."**

**I could feel everyone's eyes on me. I couldn't afford to look weak. Whatever those visions meant, I had to stay focused on our mission.**

**"Um, Lady Hestia," I said, "we've come on urgent business. We need to see-"**

Hermes paled. They needed to see him. They were going to ask about Luke, this was not going to end well.

**"We know what you need," a man's voice said. I shuddered, because it was the same voice I'd heard in the vision.**

**A god shimmered into existence next to Hestia. He looked about twenty-five, with curly salt-and-pepper hair and elfish features. He wore a military pilot's flight suit, with tiny bird's wings fluttering on his helmet and his black leather boots. In the crook of his arm was a long staff entwined with two living serpents.**

"Yes, yes. We know what Hermes looks like. Get to the point." Ares tried to rush the book.

**"I will leave you now," Hestia said. She bowed to the aviator and disappeared into smoke. I understood why she was so anxious to go. Hermes, the God of Messengers, did not look happy.**

"This is not gonna work out well." Triton dragged out.

**"Hello, Percy." His brow furrowed as though he was annoyed with me, and I wondered if he somehow knew about the vision I'd just had.**

**I wanted to ask why he'd been in May Castellan's house that night, and what had happened after he caught Luke. I remembered the first time I'd met Luke at Camp Half-Blood. I'd asked him if he'd ever met his father, and he'd looked at me bitterly and said, Once.**

"You better not mention that, for your sake." Hermes warned Percy.

**But I could tell from Hermes's expression that this was not the time to ask.**

**I bowed awkwardly. "Lord Hermes."**

**_Oh, sure,_**** one of the snakes said in my mind. ****_Don't say hi to us. We're just reptiles._**

"George and Martha," Nico cheered quietly.

**_George,_**** the other snake scolded.****_ Be polite._**

**"Hello, George," I said. "Hey, Martha."**

**_Did you bring us a rat?_**** George asked.**

**_George, stop it_****, Martha said. ****_He's busy!_**

**_Too busy for rats?_**** George said. ****_That's just sad._**

**I decided it was better not to get into it with George. "Um, Hermes," I said. "We need to talk to Zeus. It's important."**

**Hermes's eyes were steely cold. "I am his messenger. May I take a message?"**

Annabeth started biting her lip; a habit she had adopted when she became nervous.

**Behind me, the other demigods shifted restlessly. This wasn't going as planned. Maybe if I tried to speak with Hermes in private…**

**"You guys," I said. "Why don't you do a sweep of the city? Check the defenses. See who's left in Olympus. Meet Annabeth and me back here in thirty minutes."**

**Silena frowned. "But-"**

**"That's a good idea," Annabeth said. "Connor and Travis, you two lead."**

"They'll like that," Thalia snickered.

**The Stolls seemed to like that-getting handed an important responsibility right in front of their dad.**

**They usually never led anything except toilet paper raids.**

"Toilet raids are great, never underestimate them." Apollo told everyone.

**"We're on it!" Travis said. They herded the others out of the throne room, leaving Annabeth and me with Hermes.**

**"My lord," Annabeth said. "Kronos is going to attack New York. You must suspect that. My mother must have foreseen it."**

"Of course I have. I'm not called the Goddess of Wisdom for nothing, you know." Athena said.

**"Your mother," Hermes grumbled. He scratched his back with his caduceus, and George and Martha muttered ****_Ow, ow, ow_****. **

**"Don't get me started on your mother, young lady. She's the reason I'm here at all. Zeus didn't want any of us to leave the front line. But your mother kept pestering him nonstop, 'It's a trap, it's a diversion, blah, blah, blah.' **

"Because I'm right! Obviously!" Athena defended herself. "And don't be so rude."

"Sorry, Athena." Hermes apologised.

**She wanted to come back herself, but Zeus was not going to let his number one strategist leave his side while we're battling Typhon. And so naturally he sent me to talk to you."**

**"But it is a trap!" Annabeth insisted. "Is Zeus blind?"**

"I am not blind!" Zeus exclaimed, affronted.

**Thunder rolled through the sky.**

"See?"

**"I'd watch the comments, girl," Hermes warned. "Zeus is not blind or deaf. He has not left Olympus completely undefended."**

"Thank you, someone agrees with me!" Zeus pointed out. Hades and Poseidon snorted; their little brother ever the drama queen.

**"But there are these blue lights-"**

**"Yes, yes. I saw them. Some mischief by that insufferable goddess of magic, Hecate, I'd wager, but you may have noticed they aren't doing any damage. Olympus has strong magical wards. Besides, Aeolus, the King of the Winds, has sent his most powerful minions to guard the citadel. No one save the gods can approach Olympus from the air. They would be knocked out of the sky."**

**I raised my hand. "Um… what about that materializing/teleporting thing you guys do?"**

Thalia laughed. "You seriously raised your hand when you were in a conversation with a god?"

"That's what it says."

**"That's a form of air travel too, Jackson. Very fast, but the wind gods are faster. No, if Kronos wants Olympus, he'll have to march through the entire city with his army and take the elevators! Can you see him doing this?"**

**Hermes made it sound pretty ridiculous-hordes of monsters going up in the elevator twenty at a time, listening to "Stayin' Alive."**

"That does sound pretty outrageous." Apollo agreed.

"But it doesn't mean that he won't do it." Zeus worried.

**Still, I didn't like it.**

"Neither do I." Zeus agreed.

**"Maybe just a few of you could come back," I suggested.**

**Hermes shook his head impatiently. "Percy Jackson, you don't understand. Typhon is our greatest enemy."**

**"I thought that was Kronos."**

**The god's eyes glowed. "No, Percy. In the old days, Olympus was almost overthrown by Typhon. He is husband of Echidna-"**

**"Met her at the Arch," I muttered. "Not nice."**

"You understate a lot of things." Aphrodite pointed out. "That's one of them."

**"-and the father of all monsters. We can never forget how close he came to destroying us all; how he humiliated us! We were more powerful back in the old days. Now we can expect no help from Poseidon because he's fighting his own war. **

"Sorry 'bout that." Poseidon flushed.

**Hades sits in his realm and does nothing, and Demeter and Persephone follow his lead.**

"I'm in full-blown jerk mode." Hades explained. "I'll come around," He hesitated before whispering under his breath. "Hopefully."

**It will take all our remaining power to oppose the storm giant. We can't divide our forces, nor wait until he gets to New York. We have to battle him now. And we're making progress."**

**"Progress?" I said. "He nearly destroyed St. Louis."**

**"Yes," Hermes admitted. "But he destroyed only half of Kentucky.** **He's slowing down. Losing power."**

"Only?"

"I'm trying to make things sound like they're under control, unless you'd like to do it." Hermes scorned Ares.

"No thanks."

**I didn't want to argue, but it sounded like Hermes was trying to convince himself.**

"You're not doing too good a job, are you?" Ares teased.

"Like you'd do any better." Hermes retorted.

"Boys," Artemis scolded them. "If you're going to fight, go outside."

Ares and Hermes went quiet, but sent glares to one another.

**In the corner, the Ophiotaurus mooed sadly.**

**"Please, Hermes," Annabeth said. "You said my mother wanted to come. Did she give you any messages for us?"**

**"Messages," he muttered. "'It'll be a great job,' they told me. 'Not much work. Lots of worshippers.' Hmph. Nobody cares what I have to say. It's always about other people's messages."**

"We care!" Thalia cried out.

"Yeah, think about all those poor people who kept their stomach full thanks to stealing!" Grover told Hermes.

"Thanks, kids."

"I'm not a kid." Grover muttered.

**_Rodents_****, George mused. ****_I'm in it for the rodents_****.**

**_Shhh_****, Martha scolded. ****_We care what Hermes has to say. Don't we, George?_**

**_Oh, absolutely. Can we go back to the battle now? I want to do laser mode again. That's fun._**

**"Quiet, both of you," Hermes grumbled.**

**The god looked at Annabeth, who was doing her big-pleading-gray eyes thing.**

**"Bah," Hermes said. "Your mother said to warn you that you are on your own. You must hold Manhattan without the help of the gods. As if I didn't know that. Why they pay her to be the wisdom goddess, I'm not sure."**

Athena raised an elegant eyebrow, a storm brewing in her grey eyes.

"Don't hold me accountable for what I say in the future. But I do know why you're the wisdom goddess, I'd be an idiot not to." Hermes defended.

**"Anything else?" Annabeth asked.**

**"She said you should try plan twenty-three. She said you would know what that meant."**

**Annabeth's face paled. Obviously she knew what it meant, and she didn't like it. "Go on."**

"Why do I feel like this war is only going downhill from here?" Persephone asked Hera.

"Because, from the look of things, it might just be." The queen of gods replied gravelly.

**"Last thing." Hermes looked at me. "She said to tell Percy: 'Remember the rivers.' And, um, something about staying away from her daughter."**

**I'm not sure whose face was redder: Annabeth's or mine.**

"Awkward." Apollo sang.

"Shut it." Artemis snapped.

**"Thank you, Hermes," Annabeth said. "And I… I wanted to say… I'm sorry about Luke."**

**The god's expression hardened like he'd turned to marble. "You should've left that subject alone."**

Poseidon looked at Annabeth. "And you're meant to be the smart one."

"Don't listen to him, Annabeth." Sally smiled at Annabeth kindly.

**Annabeth stepped back nervously. "Sorry?"**

**"SORRY doesn't cut it!"**

**George and Martha curled around the caduceus, which shimmered and changed into something that looked suspiciously like a high voltage cattle prod.**

**"You should've saved him when you had the chance," Hermes growled at Annabeth. "You're the only one who could have."**

"What do I mean?" Hermes faced Annabeth who remained silent.

**I tried to step between them. "What are you talking about? Annabeth didn't-"**

Athena found herself warming up to Barnacle Brain's son, not too much, that'd be odd. But she found herself strangely glad that Annabeth had someone like Percy; funny, kind, protective, relaxed, a skilled warrior, and, although Athena would rather kiss Poseidon than admit it, intelligent.

**"Don't defend her, Jackson!" Hermes turned the cattle prod toward me. "She knows exactly what I'm talking about."**

**"Maybe you should blame yourself!"**

Athena was rethinking that thought about Percy being smart.

**I should've kept my mouth shut, but all I could think about was turning his attention away from Annabeth.**

But she wasn't rethinking the protective thought.

**This whole time, he hadn't been angry with me. He'd been angry with her.**

**"Maybe if you hadn't abandoned Luke and his mom!"**

Everyone found themselves cringing and watching Hermes vigilantly to see his reaction. The god of thieves's face was a blank poker face. But his eyes revealed a certain fear that he was just realising. What if he hadn't abandoned May and Luke? Would all this nonsense be avoided?

**Hermes raised his cattle prod. He began to grow until he was ten feet tall.**

**I thought, Well, that's it.**

"I hope not." Poseidon looked wary as he observed Hermes's blank expression.

**But as he prepared to strike, George and Martha leaned in close and whispered something in his ear.**

**Hermes clenched his teeth. He lowered the cattle prod, and it turned back to a staff.**

"**Percy Jackson," he said, "because you have taken on the curse of Achilles, I must spare you. You are in the hands of the Fates now. But you will never speak to me like that again. You have no idea how much I have sacrificed, how much-"**

**His voice broke, and he shrank back to human size. "My son, my greatest pride… my poor May…"**

Hermes looked down, trying to avoid the pitying looks and the sad comments.

**He sounded so devastated I didn't know what to say. One minute he was ready to vaporize us. Now he looked like he needed a hug.**

"Why didn't you hug him?" Aphrodite asked.

"I thought he was going to rip my head off and burn the remains."

**"Look, Lord Hermes," I said. "I'm sorry, but I need to know. What happened to May? She said something about Luke's fate, and her eyes-"**

**Hermes glared at me, and my voice faltered. The look on his face wasn't really anger, though. It was pain. Deep, incredible pain.**

**"I will leave you now," he said tightly. "I have a war to fight."**

**He began to shine. I turned away and made sure Annabeth did the same, because she was still frozen in shock.**

**_Good luck, Percy_****, Martha the snake whispered.**

"Saved by two snakes." Demeter smiled at the title.

"I think I like Martha and George." Artemis chuckled.

**Hermes glowed with the light of a supernova. Then he was gone.**

**Annabeth sat at the foot of her mother's throne and cried. I wanted to comfort her, but I wasn't sure how.**

Athena eyed at Percy. She had decided that she'd see the dynamics of what Aphrodite had deemed 'Percabeth'. How Percy treated her daughter would determine her view of the demigod and his relationship with her daughter. But don't take that as a way of Athena saying that she was suddenly going to ask Percy to call her Mom, instead thinking of it as a way of the goddess saying maybe.

**"Annabeth," I said, "it's not your fault. I've never seen Hermes act that way. I guess… I don't know… he probably feels guilty about Luke. He's looking for somebody to blame. I don't know why he lashed out at you. You didn't do anything to deserve that."**

Athena sighed. As much as she hated Percy, she knew that by the end of the book, she'd have no choice about her approval of 'Percabeth', that Percy treated Annabeth better than anyone else would.

**Annabeth wiped her eyes. She stared at the hearth like it was her own funeral pyre.**

**I shifted uneasily. "Um, you didn't, right?"**

**She didn't answer. Her Celestial bronze knife was strapped to her arm-the same knife I'd seen in Hestia's vision. All these years, I hadn't realized it was a gift from Luke. I'd asked her many times why she preferred to fight with a knife instead of a sword, and she'd never answered me. Now I knew.**

**"Percy," she said. "What did you mean about Luke's mother? Did you meet her?"**

**I nodded reluctantly. "Nico and I visited her. She was a little… different."**

"That's a nice way to put it," Persephone smiled.

**I described May Castellan, and the weird moment when her eyes had started to glow and she talked about her son's fate.**

**Annabeth frowned. "That doesn't make sense. But why were you visiting-" Her eyes widened. "Hermes said you bear the curse of Achilles. Hestia said the same thing. Did you… did you bathe in the River Styx?"**

**"Don't change the subject."**

"I think you're trying to change the subject, man." Triton told his brother.

**"Percy! Did you or not?"**

**"Um… maybe a little."**

"Can't really bathe just a little in the River Styx, Percy."

"Trust me, I know."

**I told her the story about Hades and Nico, and how I'd defeated an army of the dead. I left out the vision of her pulling me out of the river. I still didn't quite understand that part, and just thinking about it made me embarrassed.**

**She shook her head in disbelief. "Do you have any idea how dangerous that was?"**

**"I had no choice," I said. "It's the only way I can stand up to Luke."**

**"You mean… di immortales, of course! That's why Luke didn't die. He went to the Styx and… Oh no, Luke. What were you thinking?"**

**"So now you're worried about Luke again," I grumbled.**

"See? This is why I have sworn off men. All they do is complain, get jealous and ask you to make them sandwiches." Artemis exclaimed.

**She stared at me like I'd just dropped from space. "What?"**

**"Forget it," I muttered.**

**I wondered what Hermes had meant about Annabeth not saving Luke when she'd had the chance. Clearly, she wasn't telling me something. But at the moment I wasn't in the mood to ask. The last thing I wanted to hear about was more of her history with Luke.**

"Jealous, much?" Aphrodite raised a perfectly neat eyebrow.

**"The point is he didn't die in the Styx," I said. "Neither did I. Now I have to face him. We have to defend Olympus."**

**Annabeth was still studying my face, like she was trying to see differences since my swim in the Styx.**

**"I guess you're right. My mom mentioned-"**

**"Plan twenty-three."**

"Plan twenty-three…" Apollo commented mystically.

**She rummaged in her pack and pulled out Daedalus's laptop. The blue Delta symbol glowed on the top when she booted it up. She opened a few files and started to read.**

**"Here it is," she said. "Gods, we have a lot of work to do."**

"Ah, the life of being a demigod." Thalia sighed.

**"One of Daedalus's inventions?"**

**"A lot of inventions… dangerous ones. If my mother wants me to use this plan, she must think things are very bad." She looked at me. "What about her message to you: 'Remember the rivers'? What does that mean?"**

**I shook my head. As usual, I had no clue what the gods were telling me. Which rivers was I supposed to remember? The Styx? The Mississippi?**

"So, you can name millions of different places you'd rather swim, but you can't name some rivers?"

"I can name so rivers, I just didn't know which one the Gods were talking about."

"We'll try to be a bit more detailed when we send you messages." Hermes said sarcastically.

**Just then the Stoll brothers ran in to the throne room.**

**"You need to see this," Connor said. "Now."**

"Everything is falling to pieces." Zeus sighed.

"Everything was already in pieces, brother." Poseidon said.

**The blue lights in the sky had stopped, so at first I didn't understand what the problem was.**

**The other campers had gathered in a small park at the edge of the mountain. They were clustered at the guardrail, looking down at Manhattan. The railing was lined with those tourist binoculars, where you could deposit one golden drachma and see the city.**

**Campers were using every single one.**

Ares nodded in approval. "It's good to utilise everything during a battle or war."

**I looked down at the city. I could see almost everything from here, the East River and the Hudson River carving the shape of Manhattan, the grid of streets, the lights of skyscrapers, the dark stretch of Central Park in the north.**

**Everything looked normal, but something was wrong. I felt it in my bones before I realized what it was.**

"You sound like my eldest brother." Zeus nodded to Hades who scorned disdainfully at his younger sibling.

**"I don't… hear anything," Annabeth said.**

**That was the problem.**

**Even from this height, I should've heard the noise of the city millions of people bustling around, thousands of cars and machines, the hum of a huge metropolis. You don't think about it when you live in New York, but it's always there. Even in the dead of night, New York is never silent.**

"It hasn't been quiet in New York for centuries." Demeter noted, thinking back to the early 20th century.

**But it was now.**

**I felt like my best friend had suddenly dropped dead.**

"Dramatic much?" Zeus mumbled.

"Hypocrite much?" Poseidon countered.

**"What did they do?" My voice sounded tight and angry. "What did they do to my city?"**

"It's a war, they do whatever they like. It's one of the best and the worst parts of war." Ares told Percy wisely.

"It's was my first war, I was learning everything as I went." Percy explained.

**I pushed Michael Yew away from the binoculars and took a look.**

**In the streets below, traffic had stopped. Pedestrians were lying on the sidewalks, or curled up in doorways.**

**There was no sign of violence, no wrecks, nothing like that. It was as if all the people in New York had simply decided to stop whatever they were doing and pass out.**

"Morpheus?" Triton asked Hades who nodded in reply.

**"Are they dead?" Silena asked in astonishment.**

"Nah, they're just taking a nice little nap." Apollo replied to the book.

**Ice coated my stomach. A line from the prophecy rang in my ears: ****_And see the world in endless sleep. _****I remembered Grover's story about meeting the god Morpheus in Central Park. ****_You're lucky I'm saving my energy for the main event._**

**"Not dead," I said. "Morpheus has put the entire island of Manhattan to sleep. The invasion has started."**

"I'm not sure whether I'm excited, nervous or scared." Ares deliberated.

"All three like me, probably." Sally told the god.

"Probably." Ares shrugged. "So… who's going to read next?"

"I will." Hera volunteered.

* * *

_Review, favourite (favorite) and follow! Tell me what you thought of this chapter._


	12. C11: The Wicked Witch Of The Sea

_Happy New Year! _

_I hope you all had a very merry, cherry Christmas filled with joy, laughs, and PRESENTS AND CHOCOLATE! I mean, family and friends. Obviously._

_This is a filler chapter. I won't pretend anything different. But I really like it. It was fun to write and is actually very important so don't ignore it. _

_Before you ask me where I've been, if anyone died, got married, or had a baby, I'll tell you. I started a new year at school, and you all know what that is like- the underworld- except there's no Hades only maths teachers which makes the Underworld far better by comparison. I just got really distracted. And I'm just remembering that it's been two months! Gods, regardless of what Santa thinks, I am a terrible person. Ha, ha, ha. Or should I say, Ho! Ho! Ho!?_

_Lame try, I know. And it's February not December. The next chapter is going to be more than 22 pages long so you'll get rewarded. _

_THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR GETTING 'A TWIST TO AN IMMORTAL ASSEMBLY" PAST 200 REVIEWS. You guys are fantastic and yeah, you're all brilliant. _

_Enjoy the chapter!_

_Pattern of Night xx_

* * *

The Wicked Witch of the Sea

_Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop._

The sound of her heels on the ground made a consistent pattern on the smooth marble floor.

_Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop._

Her head was held high, her authority could be determined from just one look at the regal goddess.

_Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop._

She did not hesitate before striding confidently into the grand hall, belonging to the King and Queen of the Gods.

_Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop._

She did, however, hesitate when she spotted a woman sitting, talking and laughing with her husband. She remembered that particular woman quite well. The silly girl that took her husband from her and seduced him with her mortal ways. Sally Jackson.

"Amphitrite." Poseidon said, breaking away from the conversation with the other woman.

Amphitrite kept her composure cool and calm while she tried to contain the anger bubbling within her. "You remember me, do you?"

By this stage, the bustling hall had become as quite as a mouse. The Queen of the Sea had interrupted the conversations of war, Percy, and Luke, and directed both the mortals and immortals attention to the drama that was Poseidon's marriage.

Poseidon did not reply to his wife's question.

"Mother," Triton faked a warm smile. "Why don't you join us?"

Amphitrite turned on her heel to face her son, and raised a perfect eyebrow at him. "Triton," She started. "Why would I want to hear a story about a measly demigod?"

"Amphitrite." Persephone stood up and approached the goddess gracefully, her sister-in-law beside her.

"Hera, Persephone," Amphitrite nodded respectfully at her sisters-in-law. "I find it hard to believe that you find reading about such an insignificant mortal a worthy way to spend your time."

"It came as a surprise to most of us," Hera gestured around the room. "To find that Perseus is not as conceited, idiotic or foolish as we originally believed. The mortal, however short his life, we found to be an extremely significant influence on the remaining course of our eternal lives, on the contrary to your beliefs."

Amphitrite's face got tighter with frustration. "And I suppose that, in this time, you've come to love Zeus' bastard child as well?"

Hera looked at the Queen of the Sea with a steely scrutiny. "Her name is Thalia Grace, Amphitrite, and I'd appreciate it if you referred to her as such." Hera took a deep breath before continuing. "I cannot truthfully say I'm overjoyed at Thalia's existence, but she's important in this war, and not a terribly awful person, so I just have to deal with it."

"And you, Persephone?" Amphitrite raised an eyebrow the other, younger goddess.

"Hera is right. We can't keep acting like those bullies from Mean Girls." Persephone agreed with the goddess. "Oh, don't give me that look, I know you watched it too." She snapped at the look on Amphitrite's face. "Honestly, though, what's hating them going to do? Reverse time and make sure they were never born? Nico was born in the 20's! Sixteen years is too long to hate a mortal, that's about a quarter of their lives! It's nearly been a century for me!" Persephone exclaimed. The three Queens seemed utterly oblivious to the crowd watching them. Persephone said, softer. "I've felt a lot of things towards Nico; anger, guilt, frustration, envy, irritation. But I can't hate him just for being born."

If Hera and Persephone weren't so engrossed with their conversation and had turned to face their husbands' illegitimate children, they'd see a surprised and bemused pair of demigods paying close attention to the conversation.

"I expected more from you both." Amphitrite sighed. "I highly doubt anything in that childish book could make me change my mind."

Hera and Persephone shared a look, as if to say w_ell, we tried, _and walked back to their respective seats and husbands.

Amphitrite quickly gathered herself, the argument with her sisters-in-law had forced her to remove her cool mask. She turned on her heel and that familiar _Clip, Clop, Clip, Clop, Clip, Clop, _returned.

Amphitrite was just about to leave when a hesitant voice asked, "Er, Lady Amphitrite?" The Queen turned around and faced the topic of her discomfort, Perseus. She looked at him expectantly. "I was just curious about why you hate me so much. So yeah, why do you hate me?"

Amphitrite felt stumped. She had never actually asked herself that question. Why did she hate Perseus so passionately? Amphitrite's eyes quickly darted from an interested and slightly embarrassed Poseidon, a mortified Sally who looked like she wanted the ground to swallow her whole, and back to Percy. She opened her mouth, trying to find the words to explain before snapping at the demigod, "I don't have to tell you anything, Perseus. My feelings towards you, however disdainful they may be, are just that- mine- and I'd appreciate it if you kept your nose out of my business."

And with that, Amphitrite left the room, her head still held high, her shoes still clipping and clopping, but felt completely and utterly out-of-control.

_Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop._

The room remained silent for what felt like a long time. Everyone spent the quiet time processing what just happened. Did Persephone and Hera really just say they approved of Nico and Thalia? Did Amphitrite really just snap at everyone? Did the Queens all really watch Mean Girls?

"Soooo….." Apollo slurred, interrupting the silence. "That was…. interesting…" He trailed off.

Grover muttered. "That's a nice way to put it."

Annabeth scoffed. "I thought there was no nice way to put it."

"True." Grover replied.

Athena studied the ground in front of her in deep thought. This wasn't the way things were supposed to go. Amphitrite was supposed to see that Perseus was, while lacking boyfriend skills, the only way they'd win the war. At least things were going well with Hera and Thalia, and Persephone and Nico. Amphitrite was just being silly and stubborn.

Athena tried to ignore the awful feeling of hypocrisy as she excused herself and chased after the Queen of the Sea.

"Amphitrite, wait!" She called after the goddess.

"What? Come to tell me I should adopt the demigod and tell him to clean his room and do the dishes?" Amphitrite muttered bitterly.

Athena shook her head and walked over to face the goddess. "I've come to tell you to read the books. Take a chance, Amphitrite. What's the worst that could happen? Perseus isn't _that_ bad, and you have to admit that you want to know what is going in the future."

"It is pretty tempting." Amphitrite admitted. "But it's not like I've read the books, or know anything about what's happened so far."

Athena replied, "I can tell you if you want me too, but you have to come read the books with us."

"I just made a fool of myself, Athena. I'm not going to go back in there." Amphitrite made a face.

"No one will judge you, they know how convincing I can be." Athena tried again.

Amphitrite deliberated for a moment. "Fine, I'll read them." She said finally, somewhat begrudgingly.

"And you promise you won't be too rude and that you won't walk out on the reading again? Because Zeus is a big enough Drama Queen for all of us, but for some reason everyone insists on acting like three year olds." Athena raised her eyebrows.

"Fine, I promise. Now tell me everything you've read about so far."

Athena then told Amphitrite everything that had happened so far although she left out the jokes, for some reason she didn't think Amphitrite would appreciate them.

"Wow." Amphitrite commented, speechless. "I suppose for all his faults, and there are a lot of them, Perseus is quite a skilled hero."

Athena smiled. "You don't have to tell me the amount of flaws that boy has, I know them all."

"And you let him date your daughter?"

Athena sighed. "I suppose I'll just have to let Annabeth make her own mistakes. Now are you coming back with me or not?"

"Let's read." Amphitrite told her.

Athena smiled broadly and walked back to the grand hall.

As Amphitrite strode out proudly behind the fellow goddess, she caught Poseidon not looking at her, but looking at Sally Jackson with a melancholy, longing expression on his face. The woman seemed oblivious to the gaze, and was instead engrossed in a conversation with Artemis.

But that did not matter to Amphitrite, all she could see was that Poseidon still preferred Sally over her, a simple, poor mortal over his immortal wife, the daughter of a titan.

And boy, was she pissed off.

As she sat down, her promise to Athena vanished from her mind and she smirked.

Ah, yes. The Wicked Witch of the Sea had come to rain on their parade.


	13. C12: I Buy Some New Friends

_Hey guys,_

_Me here with a READING chapter, this chapter marks halfway through the book. Sorry about the lack of update, I've got this camp thing in the city which is an hour away from where I live. So I wake up at 5.40am (which is like a vampire waking up at 10am) and am so exhausted when I come back that I fall asleep at 8.50pm (something I haven't done since I was… ten?). Which explains why I suck._

_This chapter is actually dedicated to one reader who reminded me of a promise I made long ago- that I'd finish this fanfic before my birthday. Well, I broke that promise. Unless you expect me to finish 13 chapters in two days. So, kingawesome, thanks for reminding me. Otherwise, I would've left this for another week. Just telling the truth guys. Just telling the truth._

_Thanks for ALL your favourites (favorites, if you're American) and reviews. They really help._

_Also to Guest, this is all canon. No Poseidon/Athena or Poseidon/Sally or Poseidon/Amphitrite really. Poseidon hates Athena, but puts up with her because it's a war and this is the war goddess we're talking about. Poseidon is longing after Sally because, in my mind, she represents what Poseidon thinks is a good woman. Poseidon and Amphitrite, I think, love each other, but they agitate one another and don't respect each other. I think that's the same for all the Big Three and their wives. _

_Glad you like the nickname for Amphitrite, other Guest._

_Thanks!_

_Pattern of Night _

* * *

"I'll read." Zeus stated, leaving no room for argument. He was passed the book; he cleared his throat loudly, causing his brothers to roll their eyes at his dramatic behaviour.

"Chapter 10," He announced. "I Buy Some New Friends."

**Mrs. O'Leary was the only one happy about the sleeping city. We found her pigging out at an overturned hot dog stand while the owner was curled up on the sidewalk, sucking his thumb.**

Perseus had to leave that detail in, didn't he? Athena thought bitterly as her eyes flickered from Zeus to Amphitrite, who rolled her eyes.

**Argus was waiting for us with his hundred eyes wide open. He didn't say anything. He never does. I guess that's because he supposedly has an eyeball on his tongue. **

Demeter made a face.

**But his face made it clear he was freaking out.**

"I think everyone is," Hera stated.

**I told him what we'd learned in Olympus, and how the gods would not be riding to the rescue. Argus rolled his eyes in disgust, **

"Doesn't Argus have more than one pair of eyes?" Aphrodite asked.

"Yup." Nico answered.

"Gross."

**which looked pretty psychedelic since it made his whole body swirl.**

Aphrodite raised her eyebrows at Percy, "Psychedelic? Really, Percy? You choose some word from the 80's over freaky or gross?"

"It sounds gross. But it's actually kinda cool." Percy defended himself.

**"You'd better get back to camp," I told him. "Guard it as best you can."**

"Would anyone actually attack the camp?" Persephone wondered.

"Probably not." Annabeth replied. "But it might have been used as a distraction and it's always better safe than sorry."

No one could really argue with that.

**He pointed at me and raised his eyebrow quizzically.**

**"I'm staying," I said.**

**Argus nodded, like this answer satisfied him. He looked at Annabeth and drew a circle in the air with his finger.**

"If you don't talk, we won't be able to understand what you mean." Hera said.

"Except, you know, he can't talk cause of the eye." Hades told his sister.

Triton perked up. "Is talking about the sun?"

Apollo pondered that for a moment before replying, "Nah, I think he's trying to talk about a tornado."

"Can I please just read?" Zeus sighed dramatically.

**"Yes," Annabeth agreed. "I think it's time."**

**"For what?" I asked.**

"Yeah!" Apollo cheered, "For what?"

**Argus rummaged around in the back of his van. He brought out a bronze shield **

"I totally knew that!"

**and passed it to Annabeth. It looked pretty much standard issue-the same kind of round shield we always used in capture the flag. But when Annabeth set it on the ground, the reflection on the polished metal changed from sky and buildings to the Statue of Liberty – which wasn't anywhere close to us.**

"One of Daedalus's brilliant ideas." Athena said proudly.

"This is the same guy that went of his rocker, right?" Poseidon teased, making Athena's smile slip of her face quickly.

**"Whoa," I said. "A video shield."**

**"One of Daedalus's ideas," Annabeth said. "I had Beckendorf make this before-" She glanced at Silena.**

"Awkward."

"My poor little girl." Aphrodite cooed in sympathy for her daughter.

**"Um, anyway, the shield bends sunlight or moonlight from anywhere in the world to create a reflection. You can literally see any target under the sun or moon, as long as natural light is touching it. Look."**

**We crowded around as Annabeth concentrated. The image zoomed and spun at first, so I got motion sickness just watching it. We were in the Central Park Zoo, then zooming down East 60th, past Bloomingdale's, then turning on Third Avenue.**

**"Whoa," Connor Stoll said. "Back up. Zoom in right there."**

**"What?" Annabeth said nervously. "You see invaders?"**

**"No, right there – Dylan's Candy Bar." Connor grinned at his brother. "Dude, it's open. And everyone is asleep. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"**

"Seriously? There's a war going on right now!" Hestia huffed.

Sally shook her head, Boys, she thought, always thinking with their stomachs.

**"Connor!" Katie Gardner scolded. She sounded like her mother, Demeter. "This is serious. You are not going to loot a candy store in the middle of a war!"**

Demeter sat up straighter. "At least someone's child's got it right."

**"Sorry," Connor muttered, but he didn't sound very ashamed.**

"Can you feel the love tonight?" Aphrodite sang.

Ares groaned. "Disney, really?"

Thalia's eyes widened. "Are you insulting Disney?"

"Yeah, low blow, man. Low blow." Percy nodded.

**Annabeth passed her hand in front of the shield, and another scene popped up: FDR Drive, looking across the river at Lighthouse Park. "This will let us see what's going on across the city," she said. "Thank you, Argus. Hopefully we'll see you back at camp… someday."**

"How lovely for you to add someday… it's not making us more nervous or anything." Zeus looked up from the book and smiled at Annabeth in a tight, sarcastic way.

**Argus grunted. He gave me a look that clearly meant **_**Good luck; you'll need it**_**,**

_How lovely_, Poseidon thought dreadfully.

**then climbed into his van. He and the two harpy drivers swerved away, weaving around clusters of idle cars that littered the road.**

"Sometime I get concerned about the camp when the war in New York is over, but then I remember there's a war going on and then I freak out."

**I whistled for Mrs. O'Leary, and she came bounding over.**

**"Hey, girl," I said. "You remember Grover? The satyr we met in the park?"**

"How can you forget Grover?" Hestia beamed at the satyr who blushed a furious red.

**"WOOF!"**

**I hoped that meant **_**Sure I do!**_** And not, **_**Do you have more hot dogs?**_

"I'm glad it did. Hellhound droll smells awful and I wouldn't want to be his new chew toy." Grover commented.

**"I need you to find him," I said. "Make sure he's still awake. We're going to need his help. You got that? Find Grover!"**

**Mrs. O'Leary gave me a sloppy wet kiss, which seemed kind of unnecessary. Then she raced off north.**

"That's sweet." Aphrodite smiled.

**Pollux crouched next to a sleeping policeman. "I don't get it. Why didn't we fall asleep too? Why just the mortals?"**

"The spell is too big, making it easier to resist." Amphitrite rolled her eyes. _Demigods_, she thought.

**"This is a huge spell," Silena Beauregard said. "The bigger the spell, the easier it is to resist. If you want to sleep millions of mortals, you've got to cast a very thin layer of magic. Sleeping demigods is much harder."**

"At least someone knows what they're doing." Amphitrite grumbled.

**I stared at her. "When did you learn so much about magic?"**

**Silena blushed. "I don't spend all my time on my wardrobe."**

Artemis murmured to herself, "That's a first for a child of Aphrodite."

**"Percy," Annabeth called. She was still looking at the shield. "You'd better see this."**

**The bronze image showed Long Island Sound near La Guardia. A fleet of a dozen speedboats raced through the dark water toward Manhattan. Each boat was packed with demigods in full Greek armor. At the back of the lead boat, a purple banner emblazoned with a black scythe flapped in the night wind. I'd never seen that design before, but it wasn't hard to figure out: the battle flag of Kronos.**

"Already?" Zeus shuffled in his seat in trepidation.

**"Scan the perimeter of the island," I said. "Quick."**

**Annabeth shifted the scene south to the harbor. A Staten Island Ferry was plowing through the waves near Ellis Island. The deck was crowded with dracaenae and a whole pack of hellhounds. Swimming in front of the ship was a pod of marine mammals. At first I thought they were dolphins. Then I saw their doglike faces and the swords strapped to their waists, and I realized they were telkhines – sea demons. The scene shifted again: the Jersey shore, right at the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel. A hundred assorted monsters were marching past the lanes of stopped traffic: giants with clubs, rogue Cyclopes, a few fire – spitting dragons, and, just to rub it in, a World War II-era Sherman tank, pushing cars out of its way as it rumbled into the tunnel.**

"He's… thorough."

"And brilliant!" Ares exclaimed. He corrected himself after glares from everyone around the room. "I mean, brilliant-ly evil!"

**"What's happening with the mortals outside Manhattan?" I said. "Is the whole state asleep?"**

"Just everyone in or near the city probably." Artemis reasoned.

**Annabeth frowned. "I don't think so, but it's strange. As far as I can tell from these pictures, Manhattan is totally asleep. Then there's like a fifty-mile radius around the island where time is running really, really slow. The closer you get to Manhattan, the slower it is."**

"Hecate's behind this. It's her signature magic and the minor gods have been uprising." Athena said determinedly.

**She showed me another scene-a New Jersey highway. It was Saturday evening, so the traffic wasn't as bad as it might've been on a weekday. The drivers looked awake, but the cars were moving at about one mile per hour. Birds flew overhead in slow motion.**

**"Kronos," I said. "He's slowing time."**

**"Hecate might be helping," Katie Gardner said. "Look how the cars are all veering away from the Manhattan exits, like they're getting a subconscious message to turn back."**

"So that's just the magic department, now let's worry about all the other stuff." Apollo fretted.

**"I don't know." Annabeth sounded really frustrated. She hated not knowing. **

Percy, Thalia, Nico, Grover and Sally all turned and looked at Annabeth, daring her to argue against the book. The girl shrugged.

**"But somehow they've surrounded Manhattan in layers of magic. The outside world might not even realize something is wrong. Any mortals coming toward Manhattan will slow down so much they won't know what's happening."**

**"Like flies in amber," Jake Mason murmured.**

**Annabeth nodded. "We shouldn't expect any help coming in."**

Ares was starting to feel bad, as excited as he was for the battle, he knew they couldn't beat Kronos if his cabin didn't pitch in. He surprisingly found himself wanting Clarisse to come in and save the day and do a better job than all the other puny wimps.

**I turned to my friends. They looked stunned and scared, and I couldn't blame them.**

**The shield had shown us at least three hundred enemies on the way. There were forty of us. And we were alone.**

"Holy…" Triton saw Amphitrite's stern gaze out of the corner of his eye before changing the next word. "Chocolate, we're dead."

**"All right," I said. "We're going to hold Manhattan."**

**Silena tugged at her armor. "Um, Percy, Manhattan is huge."**

**"We are going to hold it," I said. "We have to." **

**"He's right," Annabeth said. "The gods of the wind should keep Kronos's forces away from Olympus by air, so he'll try a ground assault. We have to cut off the entrances to the island."**

"Okay, this is getting ridiculous. Ares, your stupid children need to suck it up and come fight. And Artemis, well, I'm sort of scared of you so I won't yell, but could the hunters help out? Please?" Aphrodite snapped at Ares before turning to Artemis and turning timid.

**"They have boats," Michael Yew pointed out.**

"If I could choose between the son of the Sea god or some boats, I'd definitely choose the kid, now stop being such a Debbie Downer and fight." Persephone scolded.

Hera looked at her niece and sister-in-law in amusement. "Debbie Downer?"

"Just a mortal term I picked up from some ghosts," Persephone explained with a wave of her hand.

**An electric tingle went down my back. Suddenly I understood Athena's advice: Remember the rivers.**

**"I'll take care of the boats," I said.**

**Michael frowned. "How?"**

"You've known Percy for six years and you aren't aware of his powers?" Hestia raised an eyebrow. "Wow. That's guy's really oblivious."

**"Just leave it to me," I said. "We need to guard the bridges and tunnels. Let's assume they'll try a midtown or downtown assault, at least on their first try. That would be the most direct way to the Empire State Building. **

Amphitrite raised an eyebrow. A feeling akin to conflict growing in her stomach. She didn't like Percy, the mere idea of the boy even liking her made her want to drown herself, but he wasn't stupid. Or, she corrected herself, _that _stupid. His mother though, she thought bitterly as she looked at Sally, left something to be desired.

She couldn't really understand why her husband, a god who could have any mortal he wished, had wanted her, those eleven years ago. Sally Jackson, with her tattered, blue sweater, curly and somewhat wild brown hair, and painfully sad mom jeans, was truly not up to the standard many a woman had set long before Sally's ancestors had even moved to America.

_But, _a treacherous part of her mind whispered, _you weren't enough. You were never enough. Your father was right, just like the product used in your black hair and the red lipstick you use to make your dull lips stand out, you are fake. A try-hard abandoned by your husband and ignored by your own flesh and blood._

Amphitrite turned to Zeus, trying her best to distract herself from the harsh criticisms of her mind.

**Michael, take Apollo's cabin to the Williamsburg Bridge. **

Apollo cheered.

**Katie, Demeter's cabin takes the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel. Grow thorn bushes and poison ivy in the tunnel. Do whatever you have to do, but keep them out of there! **

Demeter smiled wickedly; maybe her daughter will show those mortals what the children of Demeter are made of.

**Conner, take half of Hermes cabin and cover the Manhattan Bridge. Travis, you take the other half and cover the Brooklyn Bridge. **

Hermes grinned, "They've got this in the bag." He said.

**And no stopping for looting or pillaging!"**

"Okay, maybe not." Hermes corrected himself.

**"Awwww!" the whole Hermes cabin complained.**

**"Silena, take the Aphrodite crew to the Queens-Midtown Tunnel."**

Aphrodite was glowing as she sat up straighter, waiting for her children to prove that they (and her) weren't useless.

**"Oh my gods," one of her sisters said. "Fifth Avenue is so on our way! We could accessorize, and monsters, like, totally hate the smell of Givenchy."**

"Really?!" Ares raised his eyebrows, completely surprised.

"Yes, really. Just because my children and I love beauty, we aren't shallow. We do know some basic stuff like decency unlike your children." Aphrodite bit out.

**"No delays," I said. "Well… the perfume thing, if you think it'll work."**

**Six Aphrodite girls kissed me on the cheek in excitement.**

Thalia nudged Grover and Nico, and nodded over to Annabeth who had a ghost of scowl on her face. The three snickered.

**"All right, enough!" I closed my eyes, trying to think of what I'd forgotten. "The Holland Tunnel. Jake, take the Hephaestus cabin there. Use Greek fire, set traps. Whatever you've got."**

"We might actually have a shot," Hera thought aloud. "After hearing Kronos' attack, I thought we were doomed, not saying that the demigods aren't skilled."

**He grinned. "Gladly. We've got a score to settle. For Beckendorf!"**

**The whole cabin roared in approval.**

**"The 59th Street Bridge," I said. "Clarisse-"**

Everyone froze. Ares started muttering under his breath, some gods could pick up key words like "stupid", "kids", "fricking" and "selfish" if they listened hard enough.

**I faltered. Clarisse wasn't here. The whole Ares cabin, curse them, was sitting back at camp.**

**"We'll take that," Annabeth stepped in, saving me from an embarrassing silence.**

Athena didn't really show as much enthusiasm as the others did when her cabin was mentioned. She expected they'd "kick butt" as Ares so elegantly put it, anyway.

**She turned to her siblings. "Malcolm, take the Athena cabin, activate plan twenty-three along the way, just like I showed you. Hold that position."**

"Good," Athena murmured and nodded in approval.

**"You got it."**

**"I'll go with Percy," she said.**

**"Then we'll join you, or we'll go wherever we're needed."**

**Somebody in the back of the group said, "No detours, you two."**

"Oooh!" Apollo waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Artemis turned to her brother and said matter-of-factly, "You are such a pig."

**There were some giggles, but I decided to let it pass.**

**"All right," I said. "Keep in touch with cell phones."**

"That's not it, there's another place you've forgotten." Athena reminded the book. She tried thinking hard but for the life of her couldn't remember what tunnel it was.

"The Lincoln Tunnel," Sally said suddenly.

Athena looked at the normally quiet mother and nodded, "That's it, thank you."

"You're welcome."

**"We don't have cell phones," Silena protested.**

**I reached down, picked up some snoring lady's BlackBerry, and tossed it to Silena.**

"Hermes's kids are going to go haywire," Hestia teased.

**"You do now. You all know Annabeth's number, right? If you need us, pick up a random phone and call us. Use it once, drop it, then borrow another one if you have to. That should make it harder for the monsters to zero in on you."**

**Everyone grinned as though they liked this idea.**

**Travis cleared his throat. "Uh, if we find a really nice phone-"**

**"No, you can't keep it," I said.**

"At least someone is decent," Aphrodite muttered under her breath before shooting a glare at Ares, referring back to their exchange before.

**"Aw, man."**

**"Hold it, Percy," Jake Mason said. "You forgot the Lincoln Tunnel."**

**I bit back a curse. He was right. A Sherman tank and a hundred monsters were marching through that tunnel right now, and I'd positioned our forces everywhere else.**

"They need reinforcements." Hades said.

**Then a girl's voice called from across the street: "How about you leave that to us?"**

"Thalia has entered the city!" Thalia cheered, giving her friends high-fives. "And, finally, the books."

**I'd never been happier to hear anyone in my life.**

**A band of thirty adolescent girls crossed Fifth Avenue. **

Artemis beamed with pride. You could always count on her girls to save the day.

**They wore white shirts, silvery camouflage pants, and combat boots. They all had swords at their sides, quivers on their backs, and bows at the ready. A pack of white timber wolves milled around their feet, and many of the girls had hunting falcons on their arms.**

**The girl in the lead had spiky black hair and a black leather jacket. She wore a silver circlet on her head like a princess's tiara, which didn't match her skull earrings or her Death to Barbie T-shirt showing a little Barbie doll with an arrow through its head.**

"That's a total contrast to what you should wear. The different signals the tiara and the Death to Barbie top, which I totally resent by the way, are completely opposite one another." Aphrodite gushed/scolded.

**"Thalia!" Annabeth cried.**

**The daughter of Zeus grinned. "The Hunters of Artemis, reporting for duty."**

**There were hugs and greetings all around… **

"Really?" Apollo asked skeptically, glancing from his sister to Zeus back and forth.

**or at least Thalia was friendly. The other Hunters didn't like being around campers, especially boys, but they didn't shoot any of us, which for them was a pretty warm welcome.**

"That makes sense." Apollo nodded.

**"Where have you been the last year?" I asked Thalia. "You've got like twice as many Hunters now!"**

**She laughed. "Long, long story. I bet my adventures were more dangerous than yours, Jackson."**

Thalia shook her head, "My adventures came close, but that labyrinth sounds bloody terrifying."

**"Complete lie," I said.**

**"We'll see," she promised. "After this is over, you, Annabeth, and me: cheeseburgers and fries at that hotel on West 57th."**

"Back when we thought it was gonna be easy." Thalia faked brushing a tear back. "Well, we didn't think it was easy, just not as hard as it was." She corrected herself quickly.

**"Le Parker Meridien," I said. "You're on. And Thalia, thanks."**

**She shrugged. "Those monsters won't know what hit them. Hunters, move out!"**

**She slapped her silver bracelet, and the shield Aegis spiraled into full form. The golden head of Medusa molded in the center was so horrible, the campers all backed away.**

Artemis smiled smugly.

**The Hunters took off down the avenue, followed by their wolves and falcons, and I had a feeling the Lincoln Tunnel would be safe for now.**

**"Thank the gods," Annabeth said. **

"I don't think we had anything to do with that," Poseidon pointed out.

"You didn't," Artemis agreed. "But _I_ did."

**"But if we don't blockade the rivers from those boats, guarding the bridges and tunnels will be pointless."**

**"You're right," I said.**

**I looked at the campers, all of them grim and determined. I tried not to feel like this was the last time I'd ever see them all together.**

**"You're the greatest heroes of this millennium," I told them. "It doesn't matter how many monsters come at you. Fight bravely, and we will win." I raised Riptide and shouted, "FOR OLYMPUS!"**

"FOR US!" Apollo shouted, standing up from his seat abruptly.

Artemis grabbed his ear and pulled him down to his seat. "Ow! Ow! Ow!" He whimpered. "Artie, that was my ear!"

"Don't call me Artie," Artemis hissed in his ear, his behaviour really starting to annoy her. "And stop acting like a three year old."

**They shouted in response, and our forty voices echoed off the buildings of Midtown. For a moment it sounded brave, but it died quickly in the silence of ten million sleeping New Yorkers.**

**Annabeth and I would've had our pick of cars, but they were all wedged in bumper-to-bumper traffic. None of the engines were running, which was weird. It seemed the drivers had had time to turn off the ignition before they got too sleepy. **

**Or maybe Morpheus had the power to put engines to sleep as well.**

"They wouldn't want to help you escape." Zeus explained.

**Most of the drivers had apparently tried to pull to the curb when they felt themselves passing out, but still the streets were too clogged to navigate.**

**Finally we found an unconscious courier leaning against a brick wall, still straddling his red Vespa. **

"Hate those things," Triton shuddered.

"Why?" Percy asked his brother.

"They're, like, the girly version of a motorbike."

"Which you are not getting." Sally told her son before he could get any ideas into his head.

**We dragged him off the scooter and laid him on the sidewalk. "Sorry, dude," I said. With any luck, I'd be able to bring his scooter back. If I didn't, it would hardly matter, because the city would be destroyed.**

"Or you destroyed the bike," Hestia pointed out.

**I drove with Annabeth behind me holding on to my waist.**

**We zigzagged down Broadway with our engine buzzing through the eerie calm. The only sounds were occasional cell phones ringing-like they were calling out to each other, as if New York had turned into a giant electronic aviary.**

**Our progress was slow. Every so often we'd come across pedestrians who'd fallen asleep right in front of a car, and we'd move them just to be safe. **

"That's nice and considerate of you!" Demeter nodded at Percy in approval.

**Once we stopped to extinguish a pretzel vendor's cart that had caught on fire.**

"You have to hurry," Hera sighed. "It's good you're being considerate, but you really need to get a move on."

**We parked it safely in a doorway and kept riding.**

**We were passing Madison Square Park when Annabeth said; "Pull over."**

"William H. Seward." Athena noted.

"I'm sorry, what?" Poseidon asked.

"You'll find out soon enough."

**I stopped in the middle of East 23rd. Annabeth jumped off and ran toward the park. By the time I caught up with her, she was staring at a bronze statue on a red marble pedestal. I'd probably passed it a million times but never really looked at it.**

**The dude was sitting in a chair with his legs crossed. He wore an old-fashioned suit – Abraham Lincoln style – with a bow tie and long coattails and stuff. A bunch of bronze books were piled under his chair. He held a writing quill in one hand and a big metal sheet of parchment in the other.**

"Wasn't he ancient?" Apollo said.

"Like you can talk," Thalia scoffed.

**"Why do we care about…" I squinted at the name on the pedestal. "William H. Steward?"**

**"Seward," Annabeth corrected. "He was a New York governor. Minor demigod – son of Hebe, I think. But that's not important. It's the statue I care about."**

**She climbed on a park bench and examined the base of the statue.**

**"Don't tell me he's an automaton," I said.**

"Then she won't be able to tell you zilch." Grover said.

**Annabeth smiled. "Turns out most of the statues in the city are automatons. Daedalus planted them here just in case he needed an army."**

**"To attack Olympus or defend it?"**

**Annabeth shrugged. "Either one. That was plan twenty-three. He could activate one statue and it would start activating its brethren all over the city, until there was an army. It's dangerous, though. You know how unpredictable automatons are."**

**"Uh-huh," I said. We'd had our share of bad experiences with them. "You're seriously thinking about activating it?"**

**"I have Daedalus's notes," she said. "I think I can… Ah, here we go."**

**She pressed the tip of Seward's boot, and the statue stood up, its quill and paper ready.**

**"What's he going to do?" I muttered. "Take a memo?"**

**"Shh," Annabeth. "Hello, William."**

**"Bill," I suggested.**

**"Bill… Oh, shut up," Annabeth told me.**

"It's always so fun annoying you," Percy whispered in Annabeth's ear. She pushed him away and slapped him playfully on the arm.

**The statue tilted its head, looking at us with blank metal eyes.**

**Annabeth cleared her throat. "Hello, er, Governor Seward. Command sequence: Daedalus Twenty-three. Defend Manhattan. Begin Activation." Seward jumped off his pedestal. He hit the ground so hard his shoes cracked the sidewalk. Then he went clanking off toward the east.**

**"He's probably going to wake up Confucius," Annabeth guessed.**

**"What?" I said.**

**"Another statue, on Division. The point is, they'll keep waking each other up until they're all activated."**

**"And then?"**

**"Hopefully, they defend Manhattan."**

"Hopefully?" Sally asked, her voice getting high at the end.

**"Do they know that we're not the enemy?"**

**"I think so."**

**"That's reassuring." I thought about all the bronze statues in the parks, plazas, and buildings of New York. There had to be hundreds, maybe thousands.**

"That makes things sound better." Grover smiled.

**Then a ball of green light exploded in the evening sky. Greek fire, somewhere over the East River.**

**"We have to hurry," I said. And we ran for the Vespa.**

"You haven't crashed it yet?" Amphitrite asked Percy wryly.

"No, Lady Amphitrite. To be honest, I can't remember if I crashed it or not." Percy replied, trying his best to be respectful to the irritating goddess.

**We parked outside Battery Park, at the lower tip of Manhattan where the Hudson and East Rivers came together and emptied into the bay.**

**"Wait here," I told Annabeth.**

**"Percy, you shouldn't go alone."**

**"Well, unless you can breathe underwater…"**

**She sighed. "You are so annoying sometimes."**

"Sometimes?" Nico started. "More like always."

**"Like when I'm right? **

**Trust me, I'll be fine. I've got the curse of Achilles now. I'll all invincible and stuff."**

**Annabeth didn't look convinced. "Just be careful. I don't want anything to happen to you. I mean, because we need you for the battle."**

Aphrodite beamed. "This is so adorkable." Looking at Athena, she said, "It's a cross between Adorable and-"

"I know what it means!" Athena snapped.

**I grinned. "Back in a flash."**

**I clambered down the shoreline and waded into the water.**

**Just for you non-sea-god types out there, don't go swimming in New York Harbor. **

"It's revolting. Really, just plain gross." Triton agreed with the book.

**It may not be as filthy as it was in my mom's day, but that water will still probably make you grow a third eye or have mutant children when you grow up.**

**I dove into the murk and sank to the bottom. I tried to find the spot where the two rivers' currents seemed equal — where they met to form the bay. I figured that was the best place to get their attention.**

"The river gods. They might help us."

**"HEY!" I shouted in my best underwater voice. The sound echoed in the darkness. "I heard you guys are so polluted you're embarrassed to show your faces. Is that true?"**

"You really need to work on your insults." Annabeth told her boyfriend.

**A cold current rippled through the bay, churning up plumes of garbage and silt. **

"**I heard the East River is more toxic," I continued, "but the Hudson smells worse. Or is it the other way around?"**

"That one wasn't awful." Annabeth commented.

**The water shimmered. Something powerful and angry was watching me now. I could sense its presence… or maybe two presences.**

**I was afraid I'd miscalculated with the insults. What if they just blasted me without showing themselves? But these were New York river gods. I figured their instinct would be to get in my face.**

"Sounds right, let's hope it works." Hermes nodded.

**Sure enough, two giant forms appeared in front of me. At first they were just dark brown columns of silt, denser than the water around them. Then they grew legs, arms, and scowling faces.**

"Scowling faces are never a good sign." Grover pointed out.

"Especially with the river gods." Poseidon added.

**The creature on the left looked disturbingly like a telkhine. His face was wolfish. His body was vaguely like a seal's—sleek black with flipper hands and feet. His eyes glowed radiation green.**

"How… beautiful." Aphrodite said sarcastically.

**The dude on the right was more humanoid. He was dressed in rags and seaweed, with a chainmail coat made of bottle caps and old plastic six-pack holders. His face was blotchy with algae, and his beard was overgrown. His deep blue eyes burned with anger.**

"I think I might start hyperventilating. They sound so… I can't even… handle this." Aphrodite cried dramatically.

As usual, Amphitrite thought, Athena was right when she said everyone was insistent to act like three year olds.

**The seal, who had to be the god of the East River, said, "Are you trying to get yourself killed, kid? Or are you just extra stupid?"**

**The bearded spirit of the Hudson scoffed. "You're the expert on stupid, East."**

**"Watch it, Hudson," East growled. "Stay on your side of the island and mind your business."**

"They don't like each other, use that to your advantage."

**"Or what? You'll throw another garbage barge at me?"**

"That never works." Apollo frowned, speaking from experience.

**They floated toward each other, ready to fight.**

**"Hold it!" I yelled. "We've got a bigger problem."**

**"The kid's right," East snarled. "Let's both kill him, then we'll fight each other."**

**"Sounds good," Hudson said.**

**Before I could protest, a thousand scraps of garbage surged off the bottom and flew straight at me from both directions: broken glass, rocks, cans, tires.**

**I was expecting it, though. The water in front of me thickened into a shield. The debris bounced off harmlessly. Only one piece got through—a big chunk of glass that hit my chest and probably should've killed me, but it shattered against my skin.**

"Best curse EVER!" Nico cheered as others around the room grinned.

**The two river gods stared at me.**

**"Son of Poseidon?" East asked.**

**I nodded.**

**"Took a dip in the Styx?" Hudson asked.**

**"Yep."**

**They both made disgusted sounds.**

"That puts a bit of a dent in their plans." Persephone smirked.

**"Well, that's perfect," East said. "Now how do we kill him?"**

**"We could electrocute him," Hudson mused. "If I could just find some jumper cables—"**

Sally looked at her son bizarrely; she knew he fought battles, but jumper cables? Really?

**"Listen to me!" I said. "Kronos's army is invading Manhattan.'"**

**"Don't you think we know that?" East asked. "I can feel his boats right now. They're almost across."**

**"Yep," Hudson agreed. "I got some filthy monsters crossing my waters too."**

**"So stop them," I said. "Drown them. Sink their boats."**

**"Why should we?" Hudson grumbled. "So they invade Olympus. What do we care?"**

Poseidon, Zeus, Hades, Triton and Athena shared glances as they realised; the sand dollar.

Poseidon had never been so happy with himself, ever.

**"Because I can pay you." I took out the sand dollar my father had given me for my birthday.**

"This is gonna be a piece of cereal." Demeter smiled.

"Or cake," Apollo added. At Demeter's withering glare, he corrected himself and said, "Or cereal, cereal's yum."

**The river gods' eyes widened.**

**"It's mine!" East said. "Give it here, kid, and I promise none of Kronos's scum are getting across the East River."**

**"Forget that," Hudson said. "That sand dollar's mine, unless you want me to let all those ships cross the Hudson."**

"Break it in half," Athena said wisely, ever the problem solver.

**"We'll compromise." I broke the sand dollar in half. **

Athena nodded at Percy.

**A ripple of clean fresh water spread out from the break, as if all the pollution in the bay were being dissolved.**

"Can those things clean your room?" Sally asked her son, who looked at Poseidon. Poseidon shook his head.

"Oh, well, it doesn't change anything. Percy, you have to clean your room when you get back."

"But-" At Sally's gaze, Percy shut up. "Yes, mom."

**"You each get half," I said. "In exchange, you keep all of Kronos's forces away from Manhattan."**

**"Oh, man," Hudson whimpered, reaching out for the sand dollar. "It's been so long since I was clean."**

**"The power of Poseidon," East River murmured. "He's a jerk, but he sure knows how to sweep pollution away."**

"Like they can talk," Poseidon muttered as his brother began mocking him.

**They looked at each other, then spoke as one: "It's a deal."**

**I gave them each a sand dollar half, which they held reverently.**

**"Um, the invaders?" I prompted.**

**East flicked his hand. "They just got sunk."**

**Hudson snapped his fingers. "Bunch of hellhounds just took a dive."**

**"Thank you," I said. "Stay clean."**

**As I rose toward the surface, East called out, "Hey, kid, any time you got a sand dollar to spend, come on back. Assuming you live."**

**"Curse of Achilles," Hudson snorted. "They always think that'll save them, don't they?"**

Poseidon and Sally looked at Percy and his friends desperately.

**"If only he knew," East agreed. They both laughed, dissolving into the water.**

**Back on the shore, Annabeth was talking on her cell phone, but she hung up as soon as she saw me. She looked pretty shaken.**

Zeus sat up straighter, if something had troubled Annabeth Chase, then it must be pretty concerning.

**"It worked," I told her. "The rivers are safe."**

**"Good," she said. "Because we've got other problems. Michael Yew just called. Another army is marching over the Williamsburg Bridge. **

Apollo paled.

**The Apollo cabin needs help. **

Artemis looked at her brother in sympathy, and rubbed his back with her hand for comfort.

**And Percy, the monster leading the enemy… it's the Minotaur."**


	14. C13: We Break A Bridge

_Another birthday has passed and I don't feel any different except I think I'm taller. I'm not sure if any of you know the Vampire Academy or Bloodlines series by Richelle Mead, but I love them so much. And since Indigo Spell came out a week before my birthday, I got it from my parents. I opened it and it was signed by the author. I'll admit, I did cry, but before you judge, you imagine getting a new favourite book signed by one of your favourite authors and tell me how you reacted. Not so crazy now, am I?_

_I'm sick at the moment with a cold so I'm not a school which is why you get another chapter. I'm kinda on edge. The books are getting really serious and I want to make it interesting so there are some jokes but it won't be inappropriate like Apollo won't be teasing Artemis this chapter and Athena won't scold Annabeth at all. _

_Desperate times call for desperate measures._

_Enjoy,_

_Patterns _:)

* * *

"Chapter 13," Annabeth read. "We Break A Bridge."

The demigods all shared an anxious look.

"How are they going to get there on time? Percy's at the Hudson River and my kids are at the Williamsburg Bridge. You know anything can happen during a war!" Apollo began to freak out.

"I know all too well," Zeus nodded solemnly, looking older than his years. The mood in the room turned solemn and cold. They all knew what war was like, some more than others, but they all knew the horrors a battle could bring.

"Let's just hope your cabin gets saved as soon as possible," Sally smiled at Apollo in motherly fashion.

Behind her back, Amphitrite huffed.

**Fortunately, Blackjack was on duty.**

"Never have I ever been so glad for a Pegasus," Triton commented. Blackjack would get them to Williamsburg Bridge quicker.

**I did my best taxicab whistle, and within a few minutes two dark shapes circled out of the sky. They looked like hawks at first, but as they descended I could make out the long galloping legs of pegasi.**

"I stand corrected," Triton amended.

_**Yo, boss.**_** Blackjack landed at a trot, his friend Porkpie right behind him. **_**Man, I thought those wind gods were gonna knock us to Pennsylvania until we said we were with you!**_

**"Thanks for coming," I told him. "Hey, why do pegasi gallop as they fly, anyway?"**

"You need to eat more cereal, Perseus," Demeter sent Sally a disapproving look; what kind of mother doesn't feed her child cereal? "That way you'll stop asking such ridiculous questions."

"Mother!" Persephone abolished. "Percy is the hero of Olympus! If he could do such a feat without cereal, then it must be a credit to him."

"I never-" Demeter started. "Why do I bother? You are impossible to argue with."

Persephone turned to Annabeth and nodded, smiling smugly as she did so.

**Blackjack whinnied. **_**Why do humans swing their arms as they walk? I dunno, boss. It just feels right. Where to?**_

**"We need to get to the Williamsburg Bridge," I said.**

**Blackjack lowered his neck. **_**You're darn right, boss. We flew over it on the way here, and it don't look good. Hop on!**_

Apollo gave his sister an anxious look. Artemis kept her hand on his back, rubbing it in what she hoped with a soothing motion. As much as she teased him, scolded him and rolled her eyes at him, Apollo was her brother and he did care for his children.

**On the way to the bridge, a knot formed in the pit of my stomach. The Minotaur was one of the first monsters I'd ever defeated. Four years ago he'd nearly killed my mother on Half-Blood Hill. I still had nightmares about that.**

"I'm fine, Percy. You just focus on what's happening in the moment, there's no point in worrying about the past. And I'm still living anyway; you've nothing to worry about." Sally told her son as her heart warmed at his concern for her.

Amphitrite looked at Sally carefully. As much as she resented the mortal who took her husband, she found herself willing to admit that she was a brilliant mother. Much better than herself, she thought ruefully, looking at her son.

**I'd been hoping he would stay dead for a few centuries, but I should've known my luck wouldn't hold.**

"Obviously," Thalia snorted. "You're possibly the unluckiest person I've ever met."

Athena looked at Thalia sternly. "Actually, Thalia, Percy is, debatably, the luckiest person you've met. He is, after all, alive, with friends and family who love him, happy and, I presume, healthy."

Thalia looked down at her feet nervously. "I know." She muttered quietly.

"Of course you do! I am his best friend!" Grover boasted, trying to lighten Thalia's mood.

It did, and Grover got a small chuckle from Zeus' daughter.

**We saw the battle before we were close enough to make out individual fighters. It was well after midnight now, but the bridge blazed with light. Cars were burning. Arcs of fire streamed in both directions as flaming arrows and spears sailed through the air.**

Zeus and Hera shared a look, they'd been through many wars together, but this seemed to be the most concerning since Zeus ascending the throne and took over Olympus so many aeons ago.

**We came in for a low pass, and I saw the Apollo campers retreating. **

Apollo straightened at the first mention of his children.

Hermes looked at the worrying father in sympathy. He knew what that was like, to be constantly worried about your children. Hermes found himself wishing he hadn't agreed to read these books in the first place.

Hermes wanted to put off the eminent chapter that featured Kronos is Luke's body for as long as possible.

**They would hide behind cars and snipe at the approaching army, setting off explosive arrows and dropping caltrops in the road, building fiery barricades wherever they could, dragging sleeping drivers out of their cars to get them out of harm's way. **

Hestia's hand flew to her mouth; she, like everyone else in the room, had forgotten the mortals whose lives might be taken in the war. She'd been so worried for Apollo's cabin and the demigods as a whole, the death of any humans involved completely vanished from her mind.

**But the enemy kept advancing. An entire phalanx of **_**dracaenae**_** marched in the lead, their shields locked together, spear tips bristling over the top. An occasional arrow would connect with their snaky trunks, or a neck, or a chink in their armor, and the unlucky snake woman would disintegrate, but most of the Apollo arrows glanced harmlessly off their shield wall. About a hundred more monsters marched behind them.**

A curse word slipped through Artemis' lips causing surprised looks from everyone except Apollo and Thalia, both who knew her better than the others.

Ares, who had been unusually quiet for the first few pages of the chapter, began to structure a battle plan in his head. He couldn't do so, however, with Aphrodite's long nails cutting into the back of his hand from her worry.

**Hellhounds leaped ahead of the line from time to time. Most were destroyed with arrows, but one got hold of an Apollo camper and dragged him away. **

Artemis quickly glanced from Annabeth to Apollo who had frozen in his seat. Annabeth stopped reading and the room's attention directed to the shocked god.

"Keep reading," Apollo croaked after a while. "This isn't happening for another five years." Everyone hesitantly turned to face each other to make a decision.

Apollo muttered under his breath, "only five years."

Artemis, in a moment of sadness, brought her brother into a tight, comforting embrace. She, like everyone else, was at a loss of what to do.

Except Hermes, who did nothing, just sat in his seat, allowing his friend time to grieve and be comforted by the person arguably closest to him.

After Artemis nodded at Annabeth, the demigod slowly and hesitantly began to continue reading.

**I didn't see what happened to him next. I didn't want to know.**

Percy winced, because while he didn't know for sure what had happened to that demigod, he could guess. And guessing, Percy thought, was worse than knowing.

**"There!" Annabeth called from the back of her pegasus.**

**Sure enough, in the middle of the invading legion was Old Beefhead himself.**

Hera looked at Percy, puzzled. "I'm not even going to ask…" She shook her head, chuckling to herself.

**The last time I'd seen the Minotaur, he'd been wearing nothing but his tighty whities. I don't know why. Maybe he'd been shaken out of bed to chase me. **

Everyone would've found this funny if it wasn't such a serious situation.

**This time, he was prepared for battle.** **From the waist down, he wore standard Greek battle gear – a kiltlike apron of leather and metal flaps, bronze greaves covering his legs, and tightly wrapped leather sandals. His top was all bull-hair and hide and muscle leading to a head so large he should've toppled over just from the weight of his horns. He seemed larger than the last time I'd seen him-ten feet tall at least. A double-bladed axe was strapped to his back, but he was too impatient to use it. As soon as he saw me circling overhead (or sniffed me, more likely, since his eyesight was bad), he bellowed and picked up a white limousine.**

"Oh gods!" Triton groaned.

**"Blackjack, dive!" I yelled.**

_**What?**_** The pegasus asked. **_**No way could he . . . Holy horse feed!**_

"Never underestimate anyone who is a part of my father's army." Hades warned everyone as if they didn't already know that.

**We were at least a hundred feet up, but the limo came sailing toward us, flipping fender over fender like a two-ton boomerang. Annabeth and Porkpie swerved madly to the left, while Blackjack tucked in his wings and plunged. **

**The limo sailed over my head, missing by maybe two inches. It cleared the suspension lines of the bridge and fell toward the East River.**

**Monsters jeered and shouted, and the Minotaur picked up another car.**

**"Drop us behind the lines with the Apollo cabin," I told Blackjack. "Stay in earshot but get out of danger!"**

Grover muttered to his friends, "I don't think he needs to be told twice."

_**I ain't gonna argue, boss!**_

**Blackjack swooped down behind an overturned school bus, where a couple of campers were hiding. **

**Annabeth and I leaped off as soon as our pegasi's hooves touched the pavement. Then Blackjack and Porkpie soared into the night sky.**

**Michael Yew ran up to us. **

Apollo looked at Annabeth, at least some of my children are alive, he thought to himself.

**He was definitely the shortest commando I'd ever seen. He had a bandaged cut on his arm. His ferrety face was smeared with soot and his quiver was almost empty, but he was smiling like he was having a great time.**

"He's probably freaking out inside." Aphrodite noted.

"Like I am right now?" Sally widened her eyes at Aphrodite.

The goddess of love tilted her head to the side before saying, "yep."

**"Glad you could join us," he said. "Where are the other reinforcements?"**

**"For now, we're it," I said.**

**"Then we're dead," he said.**

Nico looked at Hades, trying to remember when he and Persephone came in to save the day.

**"You still have your flying chariot?" Annabeth asked.**

**"Nah," Michael said. "Left it at camp. I told Clarisse she could have it. Whatever, you know? Not worth fighting about anymore. But she said it was too late. We'd insulted her honor for the last time or some stupid thing."**

Ares' jaw clenched in frustration. My children better get a bloody move on! He thought viciously.

**Michael shrugged. "Yeah, well, I called her some names when she said she still wouldn't fight. I doubt that helped. Here come the uglies!"**

Amphitrite restrained herself from, yet again, rolling her eyes out of respect for Apollo.

**He drew an arrow and launched it toward the enemy. The arrow made a screaming sound as it flew. **

**When it landed, it unleashed a blast like a power chord on an electric guitar magnified through the world's largest speakers. The nearest cars exploded. Monsters dropped their weapons and clasped their ears in pain. Some ran. Others disintegrated on the spot.**

**"That was my last sonic arrow," Michael said.**

**"A gift from your dad?" I asked. "God of music?"**

**Michael grinned wickedly. "Loud music can be bad for you. Unfortunately, it doesn't always kill."**

"It provides a fantastic distraction though," Athena reasoned.

**Sure enough, most monsters were regrouping, shaking off their confusion.**

**"We have to fall back," Michael said. "I've got Kayla and Austin setting traps farther down the bridge."**

"That won't work. It's best if you drive them back, keep them in one area and make them feel intimidated." Ares shook his head.

**"No," I said. "Bring your campers forward to this position and wait for my signal. We're going to drive the enemy back to Brooklyn."**

"Yes!" Ares cheered. "Someone knows what they're doing!"

**Michael laughed. "How do you plan to do that?"**

**I drew my sword.**

**"Percy," Annabeth said, "let me come with you."**

**"Too dangerous," I said. **

Athena gave Percy a look; she doubted Annabeth would take someone telling her what to do very well.

**"Besides, I need you to help Michael coordinate the defensive line. I'll distract the monsters. You group up here. Move the sleeping mortals out of the way. Then you can start picking off monsters while I keep them focused on me. If anybody can do all that, you can."**

**Michael snorted. "Thanks a lot."**

"It's true," Apollo smiled warmly, his eyes filled with unshed tears.

**I kept my eyes on Annabeth.**

**She nodded reluctantly. "All right. Get moving."**

"Huh," Athena thought aloud.

"What?"

"Nothing…"

**Before I could lose my courage, I said, "Don't I get a kiss for luck? It's kind of a tradition, right?"**

"The cheeky little nerve of that…." Athena grumbled, clearly still not too pleased her daughter fancied Poseidon's only demigod son.

**I figured she would punch me.**

"I would…" Amphitrite joined Athena in her mumblings, both looking a bit mad.

**Instead, she drew her knife and stared at the army marching toward us. "Come back alive, Seaweed Brain. Then we'll see."**

**I figured it was the best offer I would get, **

"Wouldn't want to stretch your luck too far, now would you?" Triton nodded.

**so I stepped out from behind the school bus. I walked up the bridge in plain sight, straight toward the enemy.**

**When the Minotaur saw me, his eyes burned with hate. He bellowed - a sound that was somewhere between a yell, a moo, and a really loud belch.**

"Appalling manners, where's the sense of decorum?" Demeter asked.

"Decory-what?"

"Decorum, Perce, dignity? Propriety?" Grover tried jogging his friend's mental dictionary.

"Nope, sorry."

"Sense of modesty or manners." Annabeth explained to Percy before returning back to the book.

**"Hey, Beef Boy," I shouted back. "Didn't I kill you already?"**

**He pounded his fist into the hood of a Lexus, and it crumpled like aluminum foil.**

**A few **_**dracaenae**_** threw flaming javelins at me. I knocked them aside. A hellhound lunged, and I sidestepped. I could have stabbed it, but I hesitated.**

"Oh! I forgot that hellhounds weren't all like Mrs. O'Leary!" Aphrodite said, twirling her hair, seemingly back into bimbo mode.

_**This is not Mrs. O'Leary,**_** I reminded myself. **_**This is an untamed monster. It will kill me and all my friends.**_

Poseidon nodded in agreement, wanting his son to just kill the hound already.

**It pounced again. This time I brought Riptide up in a deadly arc. The hellhound disintegrated into dust and fur.**

**More monsters surged forward-snakes and giants and telkhines-but the Minotaur roared at them, and they backed off.**

**"One on one?" I called. "Just like old times?"**

"Man, I didn't like the old times." Grover shuddered.

Hestia looked at the gang, a stunned expression on her face. "I doubt they were worse than the new times."

"Maybe, but if you minus people dying and add all of the old times together, you'll find that the new times and the old times are kinda equal to each other. Mainly cause everyone we fought in the old times, we're fighting in this war."

"I suppose that makes sense," Hestia nodded. "Sort of."

**The Minotaur's nostrils quivered. He seriously needed to keep a pack of Aloe Vera Kleenex in his armor pocket, because that nose was wet and red and pretty gross. **

"That Minotaur needs more than just some tissues!" Aphrodite cried. "But then again, I find it hard to believe that even the most miraculous of makeup could fix that… thing."

**He unstrapped his axe and swung it around.** **It was beautiful in a harsh **_**I'm-going-to-gut-you-like-a-fish**_** kind of way. **

"Gut you like a fish?" Sally squeaked, looking at her son in a whole new light.

**Each of its twin blades was shaped like an omega: Ω-the last letter of the Greek alphabet. Maybe that was because the axe would be the last thing his victims ever saw. The shaft was about the same height as the Minotaur, bronze wrapped in leather. Tied around the base of each blade were lots of bead necklaces. I realized they were Camp Half-Blood beads-necklaces taken from defeated demigods.**

An uncomfortable, solemn, sad air set around the room. Hera was practically glowing with anger; her family may not be perfect, but it's her bloody family and if anyone even thought about hurting them or their children, there will be an underworld to pay.

**I was so mad, I imagined my eyes glowing just like the Minotaur's. I raised my sword. The monster army cheered for the Minotaur, but the sound died when I dodged his first swing and sliced his axe in half, right between the handholds.**

"Now get him where it hurts!" Amphitrite cheered quietly, utterly entranced (and saddened) by the chapter.

**"Moo?" he grunted.**

**"HAAA!" I spun and kicked him in the snout. He staggered backward, trying to regain his footing, then lowered his head to charge.**

**He never got the chance. My sword flashed-slicing off one horn, then the other. He tried to grab me. I rolled away, picking up half of his broken axe. The other monsters backed up in stunned silence, making a circle around us. The Minotaur bellowed in rage. He was never very smart to begin with, but now his anger made him reckless. **

"You're actually quite hilarious." Hestia told Percy although she wasn't laughing, no one was.

"Uh, thanks a lot."

**He charged me, and I ran for the edge of the bridge, breaking through a line of **_**dracaenae.**_

**The Minotaur must've smelled victory. He thought I was trying to get away. His minions cheered. At the edge of the bridge, I turned and braced the axe against the railing to receive his charge. The Minotaur didn't even slow down.**

"And I thought I was stupid!" Aphrodite snorted, somehow making the action look dainty and ladylike.

_**CRUNCH.**_

"Good job." Zeus nodded at Percy.

"Dude, that was brilliant!" Triton grinned at his baby brother.

**He looked down in surprise at the axe handle sprouting from his breastplate.**

Slowly, the room started clapping at Percy's victory. The Minotaur was no easy feat and the fact that Percy could defeat him in a matter of a minute or two was outstanding.

**"Thanks for playing," I told him.**

**I lifted him by his legs and tossed him over the side of the bridge. Even as he fell, he was disintegrating, turning back into dust, his essence returning to Tartarus.**

**I turned toward his army. It was now roughly one hundred and ninety-nine to one. I did the natural thing. I charged them.**

"That's crazy! You're going to get yourself killed!" Sally scolded her son, worry dripping into every part of her brain.

"Er…. Sally? You do realise that Percy has the curse, right? Nothing can kill him unless they strike that part of his back." Nico reminded his cousin's mother.

"You're right, sorry, I guess I just got ahead of myself."

**You're going to ask how the "invincible" thing worked:** **if I magically dodged every weapon, or if the weapons hit me and just didn't harm me. Honestly, I don't remember. All I knew was that I wasn't going to let these monsters invade my hometown.**

**I sliced through armor like it was made of paper. Snake women exploded. Hellhounds melted to shadow. I slashed and stabbed and whirled, and I might have even laughed once or twice-a crazy laugh that scared me as much as it did my enemies.**

"I heard it scared everyone else too…" Annabeth commented, looking up from the book.

**I was aware of the Apollo campers behind me shooting arrows, disrupting every attempt by the enemy to rally. Finally, the monsters turned and fled-about twenty left alive out of two hundred.**

"That. Was. FANTASTIC!" Ares yelled, running over to Percy, with his hand in the air. The god nodded to his hand before Percy hesitantly gave him a high five. "I haven't seen something that freaking badass from a demigod since Achilles!" He shouted before rushing back to his seat.

"Marvellous job, son. You did amazingly well." Poseidon seemed to float towards his son, Triton a few steps behind him. Poseidon then pulled Percy into a one arm hug and one last giant beaming smile before going to back to his seat.

"Best baby brother ever!" Triton grinned. "Dude, that was unbelievable! Gods, I gotta tell the merpeople this next time I see them. Maybe, with your help, I'll get a mermaid girlfriend!"

"It'll take more than me to get you a girlfriend," Percy teased.

"Hey!" Triton exclaimed indignantly. "Those mermaids are really tricky and really picky. They only date within their own people."

"Whatever you say…"

**I followed with the Apollo campers at my heels.**

**"Yes!" yelled Michael Yew. "That's what I'm talking about!"**

"That's what we've been wanting," agreed Zeus.

**We drove them back toward the Brooklyn side of the bridge. The sky was growing pale in the east. I could see the toll stations ahead.**

**"Percy!" Annabeth yelled. "You've already routed them. Pull back! We're overextended!"**

"You better listen to her, punk!" Ares growled, a sharp contrast to the happy way he was acting before.

**Some part of me knew she was right, but I was doing so well, I wanted to destroy every last monster.**

"This is your fault, you know." Athena told Poseidon. "You and your bloody stubbornness and hot-headedness might cost us the war!"

"Well, if it wasn't for me there wouldn't be a war because Kronos would kill us all in a flash." Poseidon said as he smiled smugly at Athena's gaping expression.

**Then I saw the crowd at the base of the bridge. The retreating monsters were running straight toward their reinforcements. It was a small group, maybe thirty or forty demigods in battle armor, mounted on skeletal horses. One of them held a purple banner with the black scythe design.**

**The lead horseman trotted forward. He took off his helm, and I recognized Kronos himself, his eyes like molten gold.**

It was Hermes' time to pale as he thought of his son with Kronos' signature golden eyes. He shivered thinking of Luke like that.

**Annabeth and the Apollo campers faltered. The monsters we'd been pursuing reached the Titan's line and were absorbed into the new force. Kronos gazed in our direction. He was a quarter mile away, but I swear I could see him smile.**

**"Now," I said, "we pull back."**

"Now you realise that," Thalia scoffed. "Barnacle Head."

Athena smiled at Thalia, agreeing with that statement whole-heartedly.

**The Titan lord's men drew their swords and charged. The hooves of their skeletal horses thundered against the pavement. Our archers shot a volley, bringing down several of the enemy, but they just kept riding.**

**"Retreat!" I told my friends. "I'll hold them.'"**

"So loyal, so insane." Aphrodite shook her head.

**In a matter of seconds they were on me.**

**Michael and his archers tried to retreat, but Annabeth stayed right beside me, fighting with her knife and mirrored shield as we slowly backed up the bridge.**

"Now Grover should come and it can be like those lovely old times everyone's being yapping about." Amphitrite grumbled.

**Kronos's cavalry swirled around us, slashing and yelling insults. The Titan himself advanced leisurely, like he had all the time in the world. **

"Of course he does. He is, after all, the lord of time." Artemis nodded.

**Being the lord of time, I guess he did.**

**I tried to wound his men, not kill. That slowed me down, but these weren't monsters. They were demigods who'd fallen under Kronos's spell.**

"It'll be nearly impossible to change their opinions." Hades warned Percy.

"Yeah, but think of all the parents who will be devastated." Hestia pointed out.

**I couldn't see faces under their battle helmets, but some of them had probably been my friends. I slashed the legs off their horses and made the skeletal mounts disintegrate. After the first few demigods took a spill, the rest figured out they'd better dismount and fight me on foot.**

**Annabeth and I stayed shoulder to shoulder, facing opposite directions. A dark shape passed over me, and I dared to glance up. Blackjack and Porkpie were swooping in, kicking our enemies in the helmets and flying away like very large kamikaze pigeons.**

"You make no sense sometimes," Triton chuckled.

"More like never," Annabeth teased her boyfriend.

**We'd almost made it to the middle of the bridge when something strange happened. I felt a chill down my spine-like that old saying about someone walking on your grave.**

"Crap! What's going to happen?"

**Behind me, Annabeth cried out in pain.**

**"Annabeth!" I **_**looked**_** in time to see her fall, clutching her arm. A demigod with a bloody knife stood over her.**

Athena's eyes glowed with rage and worry.

"I'm fine, mom." Annabeth smiled softly at her mother.

**In a flash I understood what had happened. He'd been trying to stab me. Judging from the position of his blade, he would've taken me -maybe by sheer luck- in the small of my back, my only weak point.**

"She better be safe, Perseus." Athena warned.

**Annabeth had intercepted the knife with her own body.**

Percy kissed Annabeth on the cheek, making her blush.

_**But why?**_** She didn't know about my weak spot. No one did.**

"Because it's true love! And true love is the strongest kind!" Aphrodite squealed.

**I locked eyes with the enemy demigod. He wore an eye patch under his war helm: Ethan Nakamura, the son of Nemesis. Somehow he'd survived the explosion on the **_**Princess Andromeda.**_

"Kill him!" Ares shouted.

**I slammed him in the face with my sword hilt so hard I dented his helm.**

"Naw…"

**"Get back!" I slashed the air in a wide arc, driving the rest of the demigods away from Annabeth. "No one touches her!"**

Annabeth kissed Percy on the lips in front of everyone, not caring who cared.

Athena glanced from the book to her daughter who was currently _busy _with her boyfriend. Maybe she could get used to Perseus being in a… relationship with her favourite daughter.

Annabeth pulled away from Percy reluctantly and turned her attention back to the book.

**"Interesting," Kronos said.**

**He towered above me on his skeletal horse, his scythe in one hand. He studied the scene with narrowed eyes as if he could sense that I'd just come close to death, the way a wolf can smell fear.**

"He probably can sense that." Persephone commented. "This is Kronos, we're talking about here."

**"Bravely fought, Percy Jackson," he said. "But it's time to surrender… or the girl dies."**

**"Percy, don't," Annabeth groaned. Her shirt was soaked with blood. I had to get her out of here.**

"When does Percy ever listen to you, Annie?"

"Never." Annabeth rolled her eyes, her head now comfortably on Percy's shoulder, her focus on the book in between their laps.

**"Blackjack!" I yelled.**

**As fast as light, the pegasus swooped down and clamped his teeth on the straps of Annabeth's armor. They soared away over the river before the enemy could even react.**

"Boom." Ares said shortly.

**Kronos snarled. "Some day soon, I am going to make pegasus soup. **

"No, you aren't. Because we are going to get rid of you before you have the chance." Nico said firmly.

**But in the meantime…" He dismounted, his scythe glistening in the dawn light. "I'll settle for another dead demigod."**

Everyone flinched at 'another'.

**I met his first strike with Riptide. The impact shook the entire bridge, but I held my ground. Kronos's smile wavered.**

"Boom." Ares repeated.

**With a yell, I kicked his legs out from under him. His scythe skittered across the pavement. I stabbed downward, but he rolled aside and regained his footing. His scythe flew back to his hands.**

**"So…" He studied me, looking mildly annoyed. "You had the courage to visit the Styx.** **I had to pressure Luke in many ways to convince him. If only **_**you**_** had supplied my host body instead… But no matter. I am still more powerful. I am a **_**TITAN."**_

"If Percy was the host body, you'd have no chance at this war. No one at the camp would want to hurt him, he's too popular." Amphitrite told them all.

Percy took a mental note that Amphitrite called him 'Percy', not 'Perseus' or 'my husband's offspring'.

**He struck the bridge with the butt of his scythe, and a wave of pure force blasted me backward. Cars went careening. Demigods-even Luke's own men-were blown off the edge of the bridge. Suspension cords whipped around, and I skidded halfway back to Manhattan.**

**I got unsteadily to my feet. The remaining Apollo campers had almost made it to the end of the bridge, except for Michael Yew, who was perched on one of the suspension cables a few yards away from me, His last arrow was notched in his bow.**

**"Michael, go!" I screamed.**

"Gods, just listen to him." Apollo muttered, his nerves building again.

**"Percy, the bridge!" he called. "It's already weak!"**

Athena's eyes widened as the situation dawned on her.

**At first I didn't understand. Then I looked down and saw fissures in the pavement. Patches of the road were half melted from Greek fire. The bridge had taken a beating from Kronos's blast and the exploding arrows.**

**"Break it!" Michael yelled. "Use your powers!"**

**It was a desperate thought – no way it would work – but I stabbed Riptide into the bridge. The magic blade sank to its hilt in asphalt. Salt water shot from the crack like I'd hit a geyser. I pulled out my blade and the fissure grew. The bridge shook and began to crumble. Chunks the size of houses fell into the East River. Kronos's demigods cried out in alarm and scrambled backward. Some were knocked off their feet. Within a few seconds, a fifty-foot chasm opened in the Williamsburg Bridge between Kronos and me.**

"Brilliant," Triton grinned.

All the demigods looked at their feet; it was until Michael was… killed.

**The vibrations died. Kronos's men crept to the edge and looked at the hundred-and-thirty-foot drop into the river.**

**I didn't feel safe, though. The suspension cables were still attached. The men could get across that way if they were brave enough.**

**Or maybe Kronos had a magic way to span the gap.**

"Please no." Aphrodite begged the book.

**The Titan lord studied the problem. He looked behind him at the rising sun, then smiled across the chasm. He raised his scythe in a mock salute. "Until this evening, Jackson."**

**He mounted his horse, whirled around, and galloped back to Brooklyn, followed by his warriors.**

**I turned to thank Michael Yew, but the words died in my throat. Twenty feet away, a bow lay in the street. Its owner was nowhere to be seen.**

Apollo paled even more, his skin turning a frightful white colour. "No, no, no. Michael's fine. He's just fallen over, that's all." Apollo kept repeating 'no, no, no"

Artemis' eyes glazed over as she watched her brother.

**"No!" I searched the wreckage on my side of the bridge. I stared down at the river. Nothing.**

Artemis hugged her brother, and after reassurance from everyone in the room, Annabeth continued reading.

**I yelled in anger and frustration. The sound carried forever in the morning stillness. I was about to whistle for Blackjack to help me search, when my mom's phone rang. The LCD display said I had a call from Finklestein & Associates-probably a demigod calling on a borrowed phone.**

"What's wrong now?" Hera squeaked, grief splattered over her face at seeing Apollo's grief.

**I picked up, hoping for good news. Of course I was wrong.**

"Of course you are. When do good things ever happen to you?" Triton sighed sadly.

**"Percy?" Silena Beauregard sounded like she'd been crying. "Plaza Hotel. You'd better come quickly and bring a healer from Apollo's cabin. It's . . . it's Annabeth."**

Athena paled looking from Apollo's grief to her daughter who was passing the book to Percy.

"Maybe you should leave for some time to yourself," Artemis recommended to her brother.

"No." Apollo wiped tears from his cheeks. Several of his children died and he could've done something to help them. "I need to stay for this battle. I need to."

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	15. C14: Rachel Makes A Bad Deal

_Hey guys,_

_I think Annabeth is gonna die in the Heroes of Olympus series. Or Grover, because someone's gotta die and Percy's got this whole marriage, legacy thing going on (which makes me happy) and authors love crushing the hopes and dreams of their readers. It's basically scientifically proven. I've been writing this chapter for about three months. Try not to kill me._

_Also, we've hit 228 reviews! Which is the same amount A Twist has at the moment! Thank you guys so much and keep reviewing, it seriously makes my day after a day full of life in general._

_This chapter is 23 pages long, 7,113 words and has caused cramps in all of my fingers mainly at the end._

_Enjoy it, I beg of you. And try not to be too mean about my absence in the reviews._

* * *

"Chapter 14, Rachel Makes a Bad Deal." Thalia read.

"Not this girl again!" Aphrodite complained. "I want my Percabeth drama!"

"Where's my daughter? I don't give a pigeon's ass about this Rachel girl." Athena demanded, a shadow coming over her face.

"Well, if we don't read the books, then we won't find out, will we?" Hera gave the two goddesses a look belonging to a teacher. "And let's not be rude to Rachel, she isn't the most… frustrating person we've met in these biographies. Thalia, please continue reading."

**I grabbed Will Solace from the Apollo cabin and told the rest of his siblings to keep searching for Michael Yew. **

Artemis flinched as she watched her brother turn stony at the mention of probably deceased son.

**We borrowed a Yamaha FZI from a sleeping biker and drove to the Plaza Hotel at speeds that would've given my mom a heart attack. **

Sally gave her son a look that clearly said, 'I'm going to talk to you later.'

**I'd never driven a motorcycle before, but it wasn't any harder than riding a pegasus.**

**Along the way, I noticed a lot of empty pedestals that usually held statues. Plan twenty-three seemed to be working. I didn't know if that was good or bad.**

"It should work," Athena said firmly before faltering, "But it is quite unpredictable."

**It only took us five minutes to reach the Plaza-an old-fashioned white stone hotel with a gabled blue roof, sitting at the southeast corner of Central Park.**

**Tactically speaking, the Plaza wasn't the best place for a headquarters. It wasn't the tallest building in town, or the most centrally located. **

"You chose it because Kronos would think that you would choose a building that fit that criteria. Smart choice." Athena appraised Percy, making him feel awkward because that was certainly not the reason why he choose the plaza.

**But it had old-school style and had attracted a lot of famous demigods over the years, like the Beatles and Alfred Hitchcock, so I figured we were in good company.**

"…And that too." Athena added awkwardly.

**I gunned the Yamaha over the curb and swerved to a stop at the fountain outside the hotel.**

**Will and I hopped off. The statue at the top of the fountain called down, "Oh, fine. I suppose you want me to watch your bike too!"**

"Please?"

**She was a life-size bronze standing in the middle of a granite bowl. She wore only a bronze sheet around her legs, **

Triton waggled his eyebrows, making his mother roll her eyes and his brother crack up laughing.

**and she was holding a basket of metal fruit. **

**I'd never paid her too much attention before. Then again, she'd never talked to me before.**

**"Are you supposed to be Demeter?" I asked.**

"No, I'm much nicer." Demeter pursed her lips together.

"And she's not even joking." Hades raised his eyebrows in disbelief.

"Idiotic comments aside," Demeter sent Hades a dirty look. "She won't be very pleased."

"Who is it?" Grover asked.

"Pompona, goddess of plenty." Hestia answered for Demeter.

**A bronze apple sailed over my head.**

**"Everyone thinks I'm Demeter.'" she complained. "I'm Pompona, the Roman Goddess of Plenty, but why should **_**you**_** care? Nobody cares about the minor gods. If you cared about the minor gods, you wouldn't be losing this war! Three cheers for Morpheus and Hecate, I say!"**

Zeus grumbled incoherently at this.

**"Watch the bike," I told her.**

**Pompona cursed in Latin and threw more fruit as Will and I ran toward the hotel.**

"Isn't she a charmer?" Triton commented sarcastically.

"She really isn't. Pompona is…" Amphitrite tried to find a word for it.

"Insane?" Posiedon offered.

"Infuriating?" Hestia offered with a pointed look at Zeus.

"In desperate need of some cereal?" Demeter added.

"Hey, they all start in 'I'!" Ares pointed out.

"That's what you concentrate on?" Artemis looked at him funnily.

"Pompona, like this family, is severely messed up in the head." Amphitrite finished.

**I'd never actually been inside the Plaza. The lobby was impressive, with the crystal chandeliers and the passed-out rich people, but I didn't pay much attention. A couple of Hunters gave us directions to the elevators, and we rode up to the penthouse suites.**

**Demigods had completely taken over the top floors. Campers and Hunters were crashed out on sofas, washing up in the bathrooms, ripping silk draperies to bandage their wounds, and helping themselves to snacks and sodas from the minibars. A couple of timber wolves were drinking out of the toilets.**

"They're doing that again?" Thalia cried, aspirated.

"The wolves haven't stopped yet?" Artemis groaned. "Could this book get any more depressing?"

Percy, Annabeth, Grover and Thalia all shared a look. _Yes, it most certainly can._

**I was relieved to see that so many of my friends had made it through the night alive, but everybody looked beat up.**

**"Percy!" Jake Mason clapped me on the shoulder. "We're getting reports-"**

**"Later," I said. "Where's Annabeth?"**

"Really, you're in the middle of a bloody war and all you can think about is a girl? You're totally whipped." Ares snorted.

**"The terrace. She's alive,**

**man, but..."**

**I pushed past him.**

**Under different circumstances I would've loved the view from the terrace. It looked straight down onto Central Park. The morning was clear and bright – perfect for a picnic or a hike, or pretty much anything except fighting monsters.**

"Every day is a good day for you not to be fighting monsters, Percy." Sally reminded her son.

**Annabeth lay on a lounge chair. Her face was pale and beaded with sweat. Even though she was covered in blankets, she shivered. Silena Beauregard was wiping her forehead with a cool cloth.**

"Not a tragic death scene!" Aphrodite pouted. "I love my drama, but Percabeth is too cute!" After a moment's hesitation, Aphrodite added, "Although, you could just see it now, a heart-rendering tragedy romantic film rivalling that of the Titanic or Romeo and Juliet." She swooned slightly.

"Sorry to put a dent in your film plans, but I plan on staying alive." Annabeth pointed out.

Aphrodite looked at her for a moment before saying, "As long as one of you dies, it'll be fine."

Athena shot a furious glare at Aphrodite who promptly looked away, scared of the wise goddess.

"Sorry," squeaked the love goddess.

**Will and I pushed through a crowd of Athena kids. Will unwrapped Annabeth's bandages to examine the wound, and I wanted to faint. The bleeding had stopped but the gash looked deep. The skin around the cut was a horrible shade of green.**

"Oh gods," Athena paled.

Poseidon and Sally shared a look, knowing how distressing this must've been for their son.

**"Annabeth..." I choked up. She'd taken that knife for me. How could I have let that happen?**

"I wouldn't have let you stop me, Seaweed Brain, you know that." Annabeth whispered to him. "It wasn't your fault."

**"Poison on the dagger," she mumbled. "Pretty stupid of me, huh?"**

**Will Solace exhaled with relief. "It's not so bad, Annabeth. A few more minutes and we would've been in trouble, but the venom hasn't gotten past the shoulder yet. Just lie still. Somebody hand me some nectar."**

"Maybe the film could have a happy ending after all…" Aphrodite pondered. "Nah, it should be bittersweet." She shook her head.

**I grabbed a canteen. Will cleaned out the wound with the godly drink while I held Annabeth's hand.**

**"Ow," she said. "Ow, ow!" She gripped my fingers so tight they turned purple,**

"Sorry," Annabeth flushed.

"It's fine, you were in pain." Percy smiled at her.

**but she stayed still, like Will asked. Silena muttered words of encouragement. Will put some silver paste over the wound and hummed words in Ancient Greek – a hymn to Apollo. Then he applied fresh bandages and stood up shakily.**

**The healing must've taken a lot of his energy. He looked almost as pale as Annabeth.**

"He should be okay," Apollo spoke up. "With some rest, of course."

Artemis bit her lip, concerned for her brother as he reverted back into his shell.

**"That should do it," he said. "But we're going to need some mortal supplies."**

**He grabbed a piece of hotel stationery, jotted down some notes, and handed it to one of the Athena guys. "There's a Duane Reade on Fifth. Normally I would never steal-"**

**"I would," Travis volunteered.**

Hera rolled her eyes. "Those children of yours, Hermes, are going to be the bane of all of our existences."

"Hey!" Hermes fake-pouted. "I thought that honor was only reserved with me!"

"Not any more, those Stoll twins give you a run for your money." Nico teased the friendly god.

"Please," Hermes scoffed. "As if."

**Will glared at him. "Leave cash or drachmas to pay,** **whatever you've got, but this is an emergency. I've got a feeling we're going to have a lot more people to treat."**

**Nobody disagreed. There was hardly a single demigod who hadn't already been wounded... except me.**

"You don't really count, you've had some help."

"And so has Luke, I mean, Kronos. It evens everything out, kinda." Percy replied awkwardly.

**"Come on, guys," Travis Stoll said. "Let's give Annabeth some space. We've got a drugstore to raid... I mean, visit."**

**The demigods shuffled back inside. Jake Mason grabbed my shoulder as he was leaving. "We'll talk later, but it's under control. I'm using Annabeth's shield to keep an eye on things. The enemy withdrew at sunrise; not sure why. We've got a lookout at each bridge and tunnel."**

**"Thanks, man," I said.**

**He nodded. "Just take your time."**

**He closed the terrace doors behind him, leaving Silena, Annabeth, and me alone.**

**Silena pressed a cool cloth to Annabeth's forehead. "This is all my fault."**

**"No," Annabeth said weakly. "Silena, how is it your fault?"**

**"I've never been any good at camp," she murmured. "Not like you or Percy. If I was a better fighter..."**

**Her mouth trembled. Ever since Beckendorf died she'd been getting worse, and every time I looked at her, it made me angry about his death all over again. Her expression reminded me of glass – like she might break any minute. I swore to myself that if I ever found the spy who'd cost her boyfriend his life, I would give him to Mrs. O'Leary as a chew toy.**

Aphrodite sighed in sympathy for her daughter while Athena suddenly felt as if there was something hidden in that paragraph that would answer something she'd been asking herself, if only she could remember what.

**"You're a great camper," I told Silena. "You're the best pegasus rider we have. And you get along with people. Believe me, anyone who can make friends with Clarisse has talent."**

**She stared at me like I'd just given her an idea. "That's it! We need the Ares cabin. I can talk to Clarisse. I **_**know**_** I can convince her to help us."**

**"Whoa, Silena. Even if you could get off the island, Clarisse is pretty stubborn. Once she gets angry-"**

**"Please," Silena said. "I can take a pegasus. I **_**know**_** I can make it back to camp. Let me try."**

**I exchanged looks with Annabeth. She nodded slightly.**

**I didn't like the idea. I didn't think Silena stood a chance of convincing Clarisse to fight. On the other hand, Silena was so distracted right now that she would just get herself hurt in battle. Maybe sending her back to camp would give her something else to focus on.**

"Brilliant idea, Percy." Aphrodite beamed at Percy.

**"All right," I told her. "I can't think of anybody better to try."**

**Silena threw her arms around me. **

"I love my daughter, and I take love very seriously, but she better back away right now cause Percabeth is here to stay."

**Then she pushed back awkwardly, glancing at Annabeth.**

"Thanks, darling!"

**"Um, sorry. Thank you, Percy! I won't let you down!"**

**Once she was gone, I knelt next to Annabeth and felt her forehead. She was still burning up.**

**"You're cute when you're worried," she muttered. "Your eyebrows get all scrunched together."**

Aphrodite giggled and kicked her legs back and forth excitedly like a child.

**"You are **_**not**_** going to die while I owe you a favor," I said. "Why did you take that knife?"**

"Because she loooves you!" Aphrodite laughed childishly.

"No, I don't!" Annabeth got defensive. Suddenly the room got quiet.

"You don't?" Percy raised an eyebrow teasingly at his girlfriend.

"Awkward…" Nico sang in the background.

"I, uh, just, um," Annabeth stuttered. "Well, uh, you see, I'm not comfortable… expressing any possible existing or non-existing feelings of the love variety to someone who I don't share DNA with."

"Basically she's saying that since she's a daughter of Athena, she doesn't really like the whole love process." Ares said bluntly.

"Wise Girl, don't worry about it. We're, what, sixteen? What happens, happens." Percy squeezed Annabeth's hand and she leaned forward and kissed him square on the mouth.

"What is up with all these teenagers and their love lives interfering with war?" Persephone muttered to her husband who nodded in agreement.

"Can we get back to book now? My daughter is kinda lying on her death bed here!" Athena exclaimed, making the two kissing teenagers pull apart.

**"You would've done the same for me."**

"That too, I suppose." Aphrodite shrugged.

**It was true. I guess we both knew it. Still, I felt like somebody was poking my heart with a cold metal rod.**

"Ouch."

**"How did you know?"**

**"Know what?"**

**I looked around to make sure we were alone. Then I leaned in close and whispered: "My Achilles spot. If you hadn't taken that knife, I would've died."**

**She got a faraway look in her eyes. Her breath smelled of grapes, maybe from the nectar. "I don't know, Percy. I just had this feeling you were in danger. Where... where is the spot?"**

**I wasn't supposed to tell anyone. **

"Not really, but we all know, so let it out," Artemis shrugged.

**But this was Annabeth. If I couldn't trust her, I couldn't trust anyone.**

Thalia nodded, "too true."

**"The small of my back."**

**She lifted her hand. "Where? Here?"**

**She put her hand on my spine, and my skin tingled.**

Aphrodite moved to whisper in Ares's ear and murmured, "And she didn't even touch the spot, I think they're each other's true loves!" She then moved back to her seat and giggled.

**I moved her fingers to the one spot that grounded me to my mortal life. A thousand **volts of electricity seemed to arc through my body.

**"You saved me," I said. "Thanks."**

**She removed her hand, but I kept holding it.**

**"So you owe me," she said weakly. "What else is new?"**

**We watched the sun come up over the city. The traffic should've been heavy by now, but there were no cars honking, no crowds bustling along the sidewalks.**

**Far away, I could hear a car alarm echo through the streets. A plume of black smoke curled into the sky somewhere over Harlem. I wondered how many ovens had been left on when the Morpheus spell hit; how many people had fallen asleep in the middle of cooking dinner. Pretty soon there would be more fires. Everyone in New York was in danger – and all those lives depended on us.**

"Oh gods, more problems. Just what we need." Grover groaned.

**"You asked me why Hermes was mad at me," Annabeth said.**

"Yeah, why am I mad at you?" Hermes sat forward.

**"Hey, you need to rest-"**

**"No, I want to tell you. It's been bothering me for a long time." She moved her shoulder and winced. "Last year, Luke came to see me in San Francisco."**

"Oh sh…" Thalia started before noticing her father's threatening and piercing look. "…ivers."

**"In person?" I felt like she'd just hit me with a hammer. "He came to your house?"**

**"This was before we went into the Labyrinth, before..." She faltered, but I knew what she meant: **_**before be turned into Kronos.**_** "He came under a flag of truce. He said he only wanted five minutes to talk. He looked scared, Percy. He told me Kronos was going to use him to take over the world. He said he wanted to run away, like the old days. He wanted me to come with him."**

"Wait… what?" Hermes looked confused.

**"But you didn't trust him."**

**"Of course not. I thought it was a trick. Plus... well, a lot of things had changed since the old days. I told Luke there was no way. He got mad. He said... he said I might as well fight him right there, because it was the last chance I'd get."**

**Her forehead broke out in sweat again. The story was taking too much of her energy.**

**"It's okay," I said. "Try to get some rest."**

**"You don't understand, Percy. Hermes was right. Maybe if I'd gone with him, I could've changed his mind. Or- or I had a knife. Luke was unarmed. I could've-"**

Hermes flinched as anger rose up in him. That stupid, insolent girl had an opportunity to stop him and she… Hermes willed himself to remain calm for the moment.

**"Killed him?" I said. "You know that wouldn't have been right."**

**She squeezed her eyes shut. "Luke said Kronos would use him **_**like a stepping stone.**_** Those were his exact words. Kronos would use Luke, and become even more powerful."**

**"He did that," I said. "He possessed Luke's body."**

**"But what if Luke's body is only a transition? What if Kronos has a plan to become even more powerful? I could've stopped him. The war is my fault."**

**Her story made me feel like I was back in the Styx, slowly dissolving. I remembered last summer, when the two-headed god, Janus, had warned Annabeth she would have to make a major choice-and that had happened **_**after**_** she saw Luke. Pan had also said something to her: **_**You will play a great role, though it may not be the role you imagined.**_

Athena thought hard, so many questions, so little easy answers.

**I wanted to ask her about the vision Hestia had shown me, about her early days with Luke and Thalia. I knew it had something to do with my prophecy, but I didn't understand what.**

**Before I could get up my nerve, the terrace door opened. Connor Stoll stepped through.**

**"Percy." He glanced at Annabeth like he didn't want to say anything bad in front of her, but I could tell he wasn't bringing good news.** **"Mrs. O'Leary just came back with Grover. I think you should talk to him."**

**Grover was having a snack in the living room. He was dressed for battle in an armored shirt made from tree bark and twist ties, with his wooden cudgel and his reed pipes hanging from his belt.**

**The Demeter cabin had whipped up a whole buffet in the hotel kitchens – everything from pizza to pineapple ice cream.**

"And, since they are my children and therefore intelligent, cereal is also available." Demeter smiled charmingly.

**Unfortunately, Grover was eating the furniture. He'd already chewed the stuffing off a fancy chair and was now gnawing the armrest.**

**"Dude," I said, "we're only borrowing this place."**

**"Blah-ha-ha!" He had stuffing all over his face. "Sorry, Percy. It's just... Louis the Sixteenth furniture. **_**Delicious.**_** Plus I always eat furniture when I get-"**

**"When you get nervous," I said. "Yeah, I know. So what's up?"**

**He clopped on his hooves. "I heard about Annabeth. Is she...?"**

**"She's going to be fine. She's resting."**

**Grover took a deep breath. "That's good. I've mobilized most of the nature spirits in the city – well, the ones that will listen to me, anyway." He rubbed his forehead. "I had no idea acorns could hurt so much. Anyway, we're helping out as much as we can."**

"Brilliant! Thank you, Grover." Hestia beamed at the satyr who blushed a vibrant red.

**He told me about the skirmishes they'd seen. Mostly they'd been covering uptown, where we didn't have enough demigods. Hellhounds had appeared in all sorts of places, shadow-traveling inside our lines, and the dryads and satyrs had been fighting them off. A young dragon had appeared in Harlem, and a dozen wood nymphs died before the monster was finally defeated.**

**As Grover talked, Thalia entered the room with two of her lieutenants. She nodded to me grimly, went outside to check on Annabeth, and came back in. She listened while Grover completed his report-the details getting worse and worse.**

Zeus and Poseidon pointedly glared at Hades; silently bullying him into helping out, as if it could change the course of the novel.

**"We lost twenty satyrs against some giants at Fort Washington," he said, his voice trembling. "Almost half my kinsmen. River spirits drowned the giants in the end, but..."**

"Oh my gods." Artemis paled. "That's awful."

**Thalia shouldered her bow. "Percy, Kronos's forces are still gathering at every bridge and tunnel. And Kronos isn't the only Titan. One of my Hunters spotted a huge man in golden armor mustering an army on the Jersey shore. I'm not sure who he is, but he radiates power like only a Titan or god."**

**I remembered the golden Titan from my dream-the one on Mount Othrys who erupted into flames.**

**"Great," I said. "Any good news?"**

"Knowing your luck, nope." Triton teased bitterly.

**Thalia shrugged. "We've sealed off the subway tunnels into Manhattan. My best trappers took care of it. Also, it seems like the enemy is waiting for tonight to attack. I think Luke"-she caught herself-**

"Awkward…" Nico sang.

Thalia punched him in the arm. "Shut it, death boy."

"Not in this lifetime, lightning chick."

**"I mean Kronos needs time to regenerate after each fight. He's still not comfortable with his new form. It's taking a lot of his power to slow time around the city."**

**Grover nodded. "Most of his forces are more powerful at night, too. But they'll be back after sundown."**

**I tried to think clearly. "Okay. Any word from the gods?"**

**Thalia shook her head. "I know Lady Artemis would be here if she could. Athena, too. But Zeus has ordered them to stay at his side. The last I heard, Typhon was destroying the Ohio River valley. He should reach the Appalachian Mountains by midday."**

Artemis groaned and everyone's eyes became directed at the goddess.

"Don't get me wrong, it's usually a very good idea to end the problem before it arrives, it's just that they really need help over in the city," Artemis explained.

_**"So**_** at best," I said, "we've got another two days before he arrives."**

**Jake Mason cleared his throat. He'd been standing there so silently I'd almost forgotten he was in the room.**

**"Percy, something else," he said. "The way Kronos showed up at the Williamsburg Bridge, like he knew you were going there. And he shifted his forces to our weakest points. As soon as we deployed, he changed tactics. He barely touched the Lincoln Tunnel, where the Hunters were strong. He went for our weakest spots, like he knew."**

"And this is all going to happen? All of this bloodshed and violence is going to happen in my city?" Sally asked no one, becoming slightly (very) concerned.

**"Like he had inside information," I said. "The spy."**

**"What spy?" Thalia demanded.**

**I told her about the silver charm Kronos had shown me, the communication device.**

**"That's bad," she said. "Very bad."**

"That's a, uh, understatement." Nico coughed.

**"It could be anyone," Jake said. "We were all standing there when Percy gave the orders."**

**"But what can we do?" Grover asked. "Frisk every demigod until we find a scythe charm?"**

**They all looked at me, waiting for a decision. I couldn't afford to show how panicked I felt, even if things seemed hopeless.**

**"We keep fighting," I said. "We can't obsess about this spy**_**.**_** If we're suspicious of each other, we'll just tear ourselves apart. You guys were awesome last night. I couldn't ask for a braver army. Let's set up a rotation for the watches. Rest up while you can. We've got a long night ahead of us."**

Athena nodded in agreement. "You truly are a born leader, Perseus. Much more dignified than your father for sure."

"I am dignified!" Poseidon defended himself.

"You wear Hawaiian shirts daily. There is nothing dignified about that." Athena bit back.

**The demigods mumbled agreement. They went their separate ways to sleep or eat or repair their weapons.**

**"Percy, you too," Thalia said. "We'll keep an eye on things. Go lie down. We need you in good shape for tonight."**

**I didn't argue too hard. I found the nearest bedroom and crashed on the canopied bed. I thought I was too wired to sleep, but my eyes closed almost immediately.**

**In my dream, I saw Nico di Angelo alone in the gardens of Hades. He'd just dug a hole in one of Persephone's flower beds, which I didn't figure would make the queen very happy.**

"You've got that right!" Persephone exclaimed. "You and I are going to have a little talk about personal property, young man." She gestured at Nico.

**He poured a goblet of wine into the hole and began to chant. "Let the dead taste again. Let them rise and take this offering. Maria di Angelo, show yourself!"**

Persephone raised an eyebrow at her husband who was coughing rather violently and feeling rather awkward.

**White smoke gathered. A human figure formed, but it wasn't Nico's mother. It was a girl with dark hair, olive skin, and the silvery clothes of a Hunter.**

**"Bianca," Nico said. "But-"**

_**Don't summon our mother, Nico,**_** she warned. **_**She is the one spirit you are forbidden to see.**_

"Brother, isn't that a bit cruel? Keeping your son from his mother?" Poseidon tried to reason.

"I have my reasons, Poseidon. Stay out of them."

**"Why?" he demanded. "What's our father hiding?"**

_**Pain,**_** Bianca said. **_**Hatred. A curse that stretches back to the Great Prophecy.**_

"Isn't that just peachy?" Percy muttered to Annabeth who chuckled in reply.

**"What do you mean?" Nico said. "I have to know!"**

_**The knowledge will only hurt you. Remember what I said: holding grudges is a fatal flaw for children of Hades.**_

**"I know that," Nico said. "But I'm not the same as I used to be, Bianca. Stop trying to protect me!"**

_**Brother, you don't understand**_**-**

**Nico swiped his hand through the mist, and Bianca's image dissipated.**

"That's lovely manners!" Amphitrite scoffed sarcastically.

**"Maria di Angelo," he said again. "Speak to me!"**

**A different image formed. It was a scene rather than a single ghost. In the mist, I saw Nico and Bianca as little children, playing in the lobby of an elegant hotel, chasing each other around marble columns.**

**A woman sat on a nearby sofa. She wore a black dress, gloves, and a black veiled hat like a star from an old 1940s movie. She had Bianca's smile and Nico's eyes.**

"She sounds beautiful," Annabeth whispered to Nico, making sure the Queen of the Underworld didn't hear her.

**On a chair next to her sat a large oily man in a black pinstripe suit. **

"What a dashing contrast," Ares snorted.

**With a shock, I realized it was Hades. He was leaning toward the woman, using his hands as he talked, like he was agitated.**

**"Please, my dear," he said. "You **_**must**_** come to the Underworld. I don't care what Persephone thinks! I can keep you safe there."**

Persephone looked straight ahead, pointedly ignoring her husband.

**"No, my love." She spoke with an Italian accent. "Raise our children in the land of the dead? I will not do this."**

**"Maria, listen to me. The war in Europe has turned the other gods against me. A prophecy has been made. My children are no longer safe. Poseidon and Zeus have forced me into an agreement. None of us are to have demigod children ever again."**

**"But you already **_**have**_** Nico and Bianca. Surely-"**

**"No! The prophecy warns of a child who turns sixteen. Zeus has decreed that the children I currently have must be turned over to Camp Half-Blood for **_**proper training,**_** but I know what he means. At best they'll be watched, imprisoned, turned against their father. Even more likely, he will not take a chance. He won't allow my demigod children to reach sixteen. He'll find a way to destroy them, and I won't risk that!"**

"Fantastic job, brother. You're destroying a family and tearing them apart. Lovely work." Poseidon scolded Zeus sarcastically.

**"**_**Certamente**_**,"Maria said. "We will stay together. Zeus is **_**un imbecile.**_**"**

"I beg your-" Zeus started but upon catching Nico's cold gaze, he became quiet as his guilt at last began to settle in.

**I couldn't help admiring her courage, but Hades glanced nervously at the ceiling. **

**"Maria, please. I told you, Zeus gave me a deadline of **_**last week**_** to turn over the children. His wrath will be horrible, and I cannot hide you forever. As long as you are with the children, you are in danger too."**

**Maria smiled, and again it was creepy how much she looked like her daughter. "You are a god, my love. You will protect us. But I will not take Nico and Bianca to the Underworld."**

"I admire her, she sounds determined to let her children grow up freely. But Maria needs to think her decision through, otherwise it's not going to end well." Sally complimented the absent and deceased woman.

**Hades wrung his hands. "Then, there is another option. I know a place in the desert where time stands still. I could send the children there, just for a while, for their own safety, and we could be together. I will build you a golden palace by the Styx."**

**Maria di Angelo laughed gently. "You are a kind man, my love. A generous man. The other gods should see you as I do, and they would not fear you so. But Nico and Bianca need their mother. Besides, they are only children. The gods wouldn't really hurt them."**

Hera coughed delicately as she looked her husband disapprovingly.

**"You don't know my family," Hades said darkly. "Please, Maria, I can't lose you."**

**She touched his lips with her fingers. "You will not lose me. Wait for me while I get my purse. Watch the children."**

"Leave the purse, just accept his offer and run!" Surprisingly, Persephone whispered, although only Hades heard her.

**She kissed the lord of the dead and rose from the sofa. Hades watched her walk upstairs as if her every step away caused him pain.**

**A moment later, he tensed. The children stopped playing as if they sensed something too.**

**"No!" Hades said. But even his godly powers were too slow. He only had time to erect a wall of black energy around the children before the hotel exploded.**

**The force was so violent, the entire mist image dissolved.**

"Marvellous job!" Amphitrite said in a way that no one could tell if she was being sarcastic or honest.

**When it came into focus again, I saw Hades kneeling in the ruins, holding the broken form of Maria di Angelo. **

**Fires still burned all around him. Lightning flashed across the sky, and thunder rumbled.**

**Little Nico and Bianca stared at their mother uncomprehendingly. The Fury Alecto appeared behind them, hissing and flapping her leathery wings. The children didn't seem to notice her.**

**"Zeus!" Hades shook his fist at the sky. "I will crush you for this! I will bring her back!"**

**"My lord, you cannot," Alecto warned. "You of all immortals must respect the laws of death."**

**Hades glowed with rage. I thought he would show his true form and vaporize his own children, but at the last moment he seemed to regain control.**

**"Take them," he told Alecto, choking back a sob. **

Persephone, in all her hatred of the Maria affair, placed her hand over Hades's as she smiled sweetly and comfortingly at him.

**"Wash their memories clean in the Lethe and bring them to the Lotus Hotel. Zeus will not harm them there."**

**"As you wish, my lord," Alecto said. "And the woman's body?**

**"Take her as well," he said bitterly. "Give her the ancient rites."**

**Alecto, the children, and Maria's body dissolved into shadows, leaving Hades alone in the ruins.**

**"I warned you," a new voice said.**

"What kind of idiot would say that to a grieving, all powerful god?" Apollo defended Hades.

**Hades turned. A girl in a multicolored dress stood by the smoldering remains of the sofa. She had short black hair and sad eyes. She was no more than twelve. I didn't know her, but she looked strangely familiar.**

"Your oracle," Hades replied, flashing a fake smile to the god.

"Well, this is strange." Apollo shifted in his seat.

**"You dare come here?" Hades growled. "I should blast you to dust!"**

**"You cannot," the girl said. "The power of Delphi protects me."**

**With a chill, I realized I was looking at the Oracle of Delphi, back when she was alive and young. Somehow, seeing her like this was even spookier than seeing her as a mummy.**

"Hey! My oracle is a majestic, all-seeing, beautiful girl who didn't have much luck with the whole life and death thing. No need to be hatin'!" Apollo argued against the novel.

**"You've killed the woman I loved!" Hades roared. "Your prophecy brought us to this.'"**

**He loomed over the girl, but she didn't flinch.**

**"Zeus ordained the explosion to destroy the children," she said, "because you defied his will. I had nothing to do with it. And I did warn you to hide them sooner."**

**"I couldn't! Maria would not let me! Besides, they were innocent."**

"I can't imagine Nico ever being innocent; Bianca, yeah sure. But Nico? No way." Percy shook his head, teasing his cousin.

**"Nevertheless, they are your children, which makes them dangerous. Even if you put them away in the Lotus Hotel, you only delay the problem. Nico and Bianca will never be able to rejoin the world lest they turn sixteen."**

"You're my personal slave for the next century," Artemis flashed a winning smile at her brother.

"I'm sorry, but what?"

"A millennia ago, you told me that your oracle would never be wrong and so we made a bet. She's wrong right here, Nico and Bianca did rejoin the world. Therefore, you're my slave for the day." Artemis explained to her lost brother.

"Damn it!" Apollo muttered under his breath.

**"Because of your so-called Great Prophecy. And you have forced me into an oath to have no other children. You have left me with nothing!"**

**"I foresee the future," the girl said. "I cannot change it."**

**Black fire lit the god's eyes, and I knew something bad was coming. I wanted to yell at the girl to hide or run.**

"She's a bit arrogant," Hera insulted the oracle.

"Hey!" Apollo complained. "Don't hate her, just because you ain't 'er."

**"Then, Oracle, hear the words of Hades," he growled. "Perhaps I cannot bring back Maria. Nor can I bring yon an early death. But your soul is still mortal, and I **_**can**_** curse you."**

"Um, I'm sorry, WHAT?! YOU CURSED MY ORACLE! WHAT THE HELL, MAN?" Apollo yelled

Artemis hit her brother on the arm and said calmingly, "Hush, just wait and listen. There may be a way to fix this."

**The girl's eyes widened. "You would not-"**

**"I swear," Hades said, "as long as my children remain outcasts, as long as I labor under the curse of your Great Prophecy, the Oracle of Delphi will never have another mortal host. You will never rest in peace. No other will take your place. Your body will wither and die, and still the Oracle's spirit will be locked inside you. You will speak your bitter prophecies until you crumble to nothing. The Oracle will die with you!"**

"Apollo," Hestia addressed the god in a mellow voice, noticing he was getting angrier and angrier. "Please remain calm, this hasn't happened yet and it'd be wise of you to listen to the words that were just read out. Hades is your family, it would be unwise to consider starting another battle or war over something that happened years ago and that you cannot stop."

Apollo listened to her words thoughtfully before calming down peacefully. Hestia could handle any anger with ease, fury, after all, is like fire, is it not?

**The girl screamed, and the misty image was blasted to shreds. Nico fell to his knees in Persephone's garden, his face white with shock. Standing in front of him was the real Hades, towering in his black robes and scowling down at his son.**

**"And just what," he asked Nico, "do you think you're doing?"**

"Brilliant timing, uncle." Triton remarked sarcastically.

**A black explosion filled my dreams. Then the scene changed.**

**Rachel Elizabeth Dare was walking along a white sand beach. She wore a swimsuit with a T-shirt wrapped around her waist. Her shoulders and face were sunburned.**

"How does one wrap a T-shirt around their waist?" Hera questioned.

"I'll show you later, if you like, Lady Hera." Annabeth offered.

"You've been improving your manners, but there is no need."

**She knelt and began writing in the surf with her finger. I tried to make out the letters. I thought my dyslexia was acting up until I realized she was writing in Ancient Greek.** **That was impossible. The dream had to be false.**

"Loving life!" Apollo cheered quietly.

**Rachel finished writing a few words and muttered, "What in the world?"**

**I can read Greek, but I only recognized one word before the sea washed it away: Περσεύς. My name: **_**Perseus.**_

**Rachel stood abruptly and backed away from the surf.**

**"Oh, gods," she said. **_**"That's**_** what it means."**

**She turned and ran, kicking up sand as she raced back to her family's villa.**

**She pounded up the porch steps, breathing hard. Her father looked up from his **_**Wall Street Journal**_

**"Dad." Rachel marched up to him. "We have to go back."**

Hera clucked her mouth with her tongue in disapproval of the girl's blunt manner.

**Her dad's mouth twitched, like he was trying to remember how to smile. "Back? We just got here."**

**"There's trouble in New York. Percy's in danger."**

**"Did he call you?"**

**"No... not exactly. But I **_**know.**_** It's a feeling."**

**Mr. Dare folded his newspaper. "Your mother and I have been looking forward to this vacation for a long time."**

**"No you haven't! You both hate the beach! You're just too stubborn to admit it."**

**"Now, Rachel-"**

**"I'm telling you something is wrong in New York! The whole city... I don't know what exactly, but it's under attack."**

**Her father sighed. "I think we would've heard some thing like that on the news."**

"Mortals are so clueless." Amphitrite remarked thoughtlessly.

"Thanks," Sally replied, an eyebrow raised at the goddess's behaviour.

"Anytime," The other woman said in return.

**"No," Rachel insisted. "Not this kind of attack. Have you had any calls since we got here?"**

**Her father frowned. "No... but it is the weekend, in the middle of the summer."**

**"You **_**always**_** get calls," Rachel said. "You've got to admit that's strange."**

"She's not crazy intelligent but Rachel Elizabeth Dare is not an idiot." Athena praised her, kind of.

**Her father hesitated. "We can't just leave. We've spent a lot of money."**

**"Look," Rachel said. "Daddy... Percy needs me. I have to deliver a message. It's life or death."**

**"What message? What are you talking about?"**

**"I can't tell you."**

**"Then you can't go."**

"Parents, right?" Triton agreed to what he imagined Rachel's thoughts to be.

"Excuse me?"

"I beg your pardon, young man. I am your mother!"

"Not you, Dad." Triton amended, pointedly ignoring his mother.

**Rachel closed her eyes like she was getting up her courage. "Dad... let me go, and I'll make a deal with you."**

**Mr. Dare sat forward. Deals were something he understood. "I'm listening."**

**"Clarion Ladies Academy. I'll-I'll go there in the fall. I won't even complain. But you have to get me back to New York **_**right now.**_**"**

"That's one hell of a sacrifice." Ares shuddered. "Not in my wildest dreams would I ever agree of going to _that_ school."

**He was silent for a long time. Then he opened his phone and made a call.**

**"Douglas? Prep the plane. We're leaving for New York. Yes... immediately."**

"That was quick."

**Rachel flung her arms around him, and her father seemed surprised, like she'd never hugged him before.**

"She probably thinks he's never done anything to deserve it."

"He probably hasn't."

**"I'll make it up to you, Dad!"**

**He smiled, but his expression was chilly. He studied her like he wasn't seeing his daughter – just the young lady he wanted her to be, once Clarion Academy got through with her.**

**"Yes, Rachel," he agreed. "You most certainly will."**

**The scene faded. I mumbled in my sleep: "Rachel, no!"**

"Two dreams in one, unlucky bugger." Thalia told her cousin sympathetically.

**I was still tossing and turning when Thalia shook me awake.**

**"Percy," she said. "Come on. It's late afternoon. We've got visitors."**

**I sat up, disoriented. The bed was too comfortable, and I hated sleeping in the middle of the day.**

"Who doesn't? The sun gets in your eyes and for some reason, no matter how exhausted you are, you can never fall asleep." Grover nodded in agreement.

**"Visitors?" I said.**

**Thalia nodded grimly. "A Titan wants to see you, under a flag of truce. He has a message from Kronos."**

"I really don't like these stupid cliffhangers." Demeter pouted.


End file.
